A Chinese restaurant is in hot water after challenging customers to eat over 100 dumplings, potentially placing them in violation of the country’s anti-food waste law, CNN reported Sunday.
Authorities in the city of Yibin in the southwestern province of Sichuan cracked down on the unnamed restaurant after catching wind of its “king of big stomach challenge,” according to a CNN report.
The restaurant offered customers a free meal and other prizes for whoever managed to snarf down 108 spicy wonton dumplings, according to CNN. The challenge was advertised on social media, garnering the attention of China’s State Administration for Market Regulation, who said they would open an investigation into the restaurant to determine if it had breached food waste laws, according to CNN. (RELATED: ‘Virtually Impossible’: Janet Yellen Says United States Not Seeking To ‘Decouple’ From China)
China enacted laws against wasting food in 2021 amid the explosion of food bloggers livestreaming themselves binging on food, a trend known as mukbanging, The New York Times reported.
Under the law, restaurant owners can reportedly be fined up to 10,000 yuan ($1400) if they “induce or mislead customers to order excessively to cause obvious waste.” Radio and television broadcasters can face even steeper fines of up to ten times more if caught “making, publishing, promoting programs or audio messages about eating excessively and binge eating and drinking.”
FOOD SECURITY IN CHINA | OPERATION EMPTY PLATE
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s push to discourage the public from overindulging in food and drink is backed up by fines against broadcasters and restaurants encouraging such behavior.https://t.co/WovK0WrGeJ
— Nikkei Asia (@NikkeiAsia) April 30, 2021
China’s President Xi Jinping called his country’s food waste “shocking and distressing” when he enacted the 2021 laws. A Chinese school said it would bar students from applying for scholarships if their daily leftovers exceeded a certain amount. A restaurant placed electronic scales at its entrance for customers to weigh themselves, The New York Times reported.