A nursery owner and five staff were jailed for poisoning 247 children with lead-tainted food, after using inedible paint to improve meal appearance.
01Summary
- 01Owner Li Huifang received life imprisonment for producing and selling toxic food at Heshi Peixin Kindergarten in Gansu province.
- 02247 pupils and staff had abnormally high blood lead levels in July 2025 after children fell ill.
- 03Food samples contained lead 2,000 times above China's national safety limit.
- 04Executive principal Zhi Jinglin was sentenced to 15 years; four kitchen staff received 6-8 years.
- 05Chinese officials later covered up the incident by tampering with blood tests and accepting bribes.
02Why it matters
Lead poisoning can severely damage children's brains and nervous systems; this case has prompted new national food safety guidelines for school meals in China.
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