Chinese Officials Accused of Covering Up Lead Poisoning Scandal in Children

A significant scandal unfolds in China as a report details a cover-up involving health officials and leads to public outrage.

Provincial health officials in Gansu Province have been implicated in a scandal involving the tampering of blood tests related to a lead poisoning epidemic that affected over 250 kindergarten children. This rare acknowledgment of bureaucratic misconduct comes as authorities confirm that some children suffered severe health consequences due to food contaminated with powdered pigments high in lead content, marked as inedible.

The official report highlights that officials from the local education department in Tianshui city ignored red flags regarding the unlicensed status of the implicated kindergarten, which also received unauthorized gifts from a local investor. It further details that food safety inspections at the institution were merely cursory.

The situation has garnered intense public scrutiny and discussion over the last few weeks, reflecting concerns over food safety prevalent in China. The contaminated food served to these children contained powdered dyes that exceeded the national food safety levels by a staggering margin of 2,000 times, with some pigments composed of over 20% lead.

Parents had already suspected a cover-up prior to the report's release, leading some to seek third-party testing for their children in other provinces. Investigations revealed that one child had persistently high lead levels for six months, from November 2024, without any alerts issued by Tianshui No. 2 People’s Hospital. Moreover, the same hospital reportedly altered blood test results for two other children, making their lead levels appear significantly lower than they actually were.

This investigation has deepened the public's anger regarding the official mishandling of a public health crisis and raised urgent questions about the integrity of food safety protocols implemented in schools.