Adding poison makes pastries more colorful! The person in charge of 247 children in a Chinese kindergarten had abnormal blood lead and was sentenced to life imprisonment

A monitor image of the kitchen of Brownstone Peixin Kindergarten in Tianshui City, Gansu Province, China shows staff making colorful food on the cooking table. The investigation pointed out that the park mixed toxic and harmful non-food ingredients into the meals, causing blood lead abnormalities in many children. (Reproduced from Chinese media)

A lead poisoning incident broke out in Brownshi Peixin Kindergarten in Maiji District, Tianshui City, Gansu Province, China in 2025. 247 children and many teachers were tested for bleeding lead abnormalities. The investigation found that the park management actually instructed the kitchen staff to add paint purchased online and clearly marked "no edible" into the pastries, just to make the food more colorful. The Intermediate People's Court of Lanzhou City, Gansu Province announced the first instance verdict on the 16th. Li Huifang, the actual person in charge of the kindergarten, was sentenced to life imprisonment, and five other people were sentenced.

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Chinese media reported that this case occurred in July 2025. Chinese official investigations have determined that Li Huifang, the actual person in charge of the kindergarten, and Zhu Jinglin, the executive director, instructed and arranged for kitchen staff to mix toxic and harmful non-food ingredients into food for children and teachers, causing serious consequences.

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There are edible alternatives but still choose paints

According to the investigation, the park purchased natural fruit and vegetable powder as food coloring at a price of RMB 5.04 per 100 grams. After comparison, the garden thought that the colors produced by the paints were more vivid, so they chose to add the paints to the cakes. The investigation pointed out that the park hopes to use this to make the food more attractive in appearance, expand enrollment and increase revenue.

These pigments are not food raw materials, and the products are clearly marked "No Consumption". However, the kindergarten still uses it for meals, allowing children and teachers to eat food containing toxic and harmful ingredients without their knowledge.

"CCTV News" reported that the Lanzhou Intermediate People's Court determined that the actions of Li Huifang, Zhu Jinglin and four kitchen staff Niu Aiyuan, Wen Yafang, He Xuxia, and An Chunling constituted the "crime of producing and selling toxic and harmful food" under China's Criminal Law, and the circumstances were particularly serious.

The court sentenced Li Huifang to life imprisonment, deprivation of political rights for life, and confiscated personal property of RMB 500,000; Zhu Jinglin was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined RMB 300,000. Four kitchen staff were sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment ranging from 6 to 8 years and fined.

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