China Busts 35 Restaurants for Seasoning Food with Opium Poppies

The China Food and Drug Administration has busted 35 restaurants for illegally using opium poppies as food seasonings.

The administration stated that five of the restaurants are being prosecuted while officials further investigate the remaining 30 locations in southwestern Chongqing, the New York Times reported.

According to China Daily, owners at 25 of the restaurants will be criminally investigated through the country's public security departments. The owners of the other 10 restaurants will be investigated via the food and drug administration.

The investigators are encouraging local authorities to help them figure out where the poppies are coming from. One of the restaurants that is being investigated is a Huda Restaurant location in Beijing. The manager, Hu Ling, confirmed the ongoing investigation but did not have much to say about the situation other than that the restaurant may have bought opiate-laced seasonings without knowing it.

At these restaurants, traces of opiates, such as morphine and codeine, were mainly found in soup-based dishes, such as hotpots, fish and seafood dishes and even fried chicken. The poppies add flavor and could lead to addiction, although the latter has not been proven.

Poppy powder is an illegal food additive that contains low levels of opiates. Despite its illegal status, restaurants have repeatedly been caught using it. In 2014, one noddle shop in the Shaanxi province was busted after the authorities were tipped about a failed drug test. A man had been tested shortly after he ate at the location. In 2012, authorities closed down seven restaurants in the Ningxia province for using the additive. In 2004, 215 restaurants were shut down in the Guizhou province for using opium poppies.

The current investigation will place pressure on local authorities to keep a closer eye on restaurants.