The cardboard bun hoax was a falsified news report broadcast in July 2007 on
Beijing Television
Beijing Radio and Television Station (BRTV), formerly Beijing Media Network (BMN), is a government-owned television network in China. It broadcasts from Beijing. The channel is available only in Chinese.
Beijing Media Network was founded o ...
's BTV-7 (the Lifestyle Channel). In the report, footage implied that local vendors were selling
pork buns, a common breakfast food, filled with a composite of 60% caustic soda-soaked
cardboard
Cardboard is a generic term for heavy paper-based products. The construction can range from a thick paper known as paperboard to corrugated fiberboard which is made of multiple plies of material. Natural cardboards can range from grey to light ...
and 40% fatty
pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...
. Coming after several highly publicized
food safety incidents in China
Food safety incidents in China have received increased international media scrutiny following the reform and opening of the country, and its joining the World Trade Organization. Urban areas have become more aware of food safety as their incomes ri ...
, the report was widely believed and sparked public outrage.
On July 18, 2007, Chinese law enforcement officials reported that they had detained Zi Beijia (
訾 北 佳), a local freelance reporter, for allegedly faking the news report. Zi, using the alias Hu Yue (胡月),
is believed to have hired four
migrant workers
A migrant worker is a person who migrates within a home country or outside it to pursue work. Migrant workers usually do not have the intention to stay permanently in the country or region in which they work.
Migrant workers who work outsi ...
to make the cardboard buns as he filmed.
BTV 7 apologized, saying it was "profoundly sorry" for the deception and its "vile impact on society." Beijing's health authorities reported finding no evidence of cardboard in local buns. Furthermore, the Beijing Municipal Food Safety Office found that even if buns are filled with a five percent mixture of cardboard "the fiber substance can be easily seen, and the meat buns made this way could not be easily chewed."
On August 12, 2007, Zi was sentenced to a year in jail and a fine of $132.
See also
*
Food safety incidents in China
Food safety incidents in China have received increased international media scrutiny following the reform and opening of the country, and its joining the World Trade Organization. Urban areas have become more aware of food safety as their incomes ri ...
References
External links
Xinhua report, July 19, 2007
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071211200513/http://big5.xinhuanet.com/gate/big5/news.xinhuanet.com/focus/2007-07/20/content_6404544.htm , date=2007-12-11 , July 20, 2007
Video
Japanese news reportChinese news report
Journalistic hoaxes
2007 in China
2007 in Chinese television
Hoaxes in China
2007 hoaxes