China's June sampling: 37 foods failed — the full list
The one-line takeaway for parents
China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) June notice (No. 73 of 2026): 1,865 food samples tested, 37 failed. Nearly all are sold on mainland online marketplaces — Pinduoduo, Taobao, Tmall, Douyin.1
What matters most for parents: three "matcha powders" tested over the lead limit; a famous chain (點都德) rice-noodle roll used a banned preservative; imported pistachios and dried apricots exceeded the sulphur-dioxide limit; a honey had a banned veterinary drug — plus several camel/goat milk powders and infant special-dietary items with nutrient/label mismatches. The full 37, organised by issue, below.
What is this notice?
This is a routine mainland-China food-safety supervision-sampling notice — SAMR periodically tests food on sale nationwide, publishes the failing batches, and hands them to provincial regulators for follow-up. This round (published 23 June 2026) tested 1,865 samples and found 37 unsatisfactory.1
Why it matters for HK parents: most of these products sell on mainland online platforms (Pinduoduo, Taobao, Tmall, Douyin, Kuaishou, Meituan) — exactly what you'd buy on a trip north or via cross-border shopping. Knowing the items and the problems lets you steer around them.
What parents should watch most
- Lead in matcha powder (3 items): matcha lattes and baking are popular, but three matcha powders/solid drinks exceeded the lead limit. Lead hits children's neurodevelopment hardest — be wary of cheap, unbranded matcha powder.
- Famous chain 點都德's rice-noodle rolls, banned preservative: a Chongqing 點都德 soy-sauce claypot rice-noodle roll tested positive for sodium dehydroacetate — a preservative banned in rice/flour products.
- Sulphur dioxide: imported California pistachios (Wonderful) and Xinjiang dried apricots exceeded the SO₂ limit — can trigger asthma in sensitive people, including some children.
- Banned vet drug in honey: a linden honey tested positive for metronidazole.
- Infant / special-dietary products: several camel-milk and goat-milk powders, a pregnancy/lactation supplement, and a "special dietary" drink sold at baby-goods stores had vitamins/minerals not matching the label or national standard — not necessarily harmful, but "the amounts don't match the label" is worth caution for anything you give a baby or child.
The full 37, by issue category
The top rows (bold) are the chemical/contamination issues that warrant most attention; the lower half is mostly quality or nutrient-label mismatches. Product and company names are kept in the original Chinese so you can verify them online.
| # | Category | Product | Seller / platform | Producer | Failed item |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Additive / colourant | House spicy beef 自製麻辣牛肉 | Chengdu hotpot restaurant | — | Ponceau 4R (illegal colourant) |
| 9 | Additive / colourant | Milk-thistle/kudzu/seabuckthorn purée | 官方國貨甄選 (Taobao) | 安徽正茂食品 | Sunset Yellow + yeast/APC |
| 10 | Additive / colourant | Soy-sauce claypot rice-noodle rolls 豬腸粉 | 重慶點都德飲食 (Dian Du De) | — | Sodium dehydroacetate (banned preservative) |
| 28 | Additive / colourant | Cola soda 可樂型汽水 | 北京瀛海昱翰盛 | 焦作博愛喜多力飲品 | Undeclared aspartame |
| 12 | Heavy metal (lead) | Matcha powder 抹茶粉 | 花時農場 (Tmall) | 安徽禾康藥業 | Lead over limit |
| 13 | Heavy metal (lead) | Matcha powder 抹茶粉 | 濰坊美凱威 (Alibaba) | 濰坊美凱威 | Lead over limit |
| 14 | Heavy metal (lead) | Matcha powder (solid drink) 抹茶粉 | 陌上花開 (Tmall) | 安徽騰雲堂 | Lead over limit |
| 7 | Sulphur dioxide | Dried apricots 小白杏果乾 | 疆果記 (Meituan) | — | SO₂ residue over limit |
| 8 | Sulphur dioxide | Wonderful US pistachios (unsalted) 開心果 | Hema 盒馬 | Wonderful Pistachios (USA) | SO₂ residue over limit |
| 15 | Vet drug | Linden honey 椴樹雪蜜 | 鄉愁沈丹 (Douyin) | 福建樂之食品 | Metronidazole (banned vet drug) |
| 1 | Microbial | Herbal tea 酸棗仁百合茯苓茶 | 同源御養 (Pinduoduo) | 安徽博瑞堂 | Mould count |
| 2 | Microbial | Soy sauce 手工醬油 | 朝初旗艦店 (Pinduoduo) | 山東匠心初味 | Aerobic plate count |
| 3 | Microbial | Sausage 地道腸 | 雄豐食品 (Taobao) | 廣東廣豐食品 | Aerobic plate count |
| 4 | Microbial | Lotus-root powder 手削純藕粉 | 藕鄉農家 (WeChat) | 揚州荷賞記 | Aerobic plate count |
| 5 | Microbial | Hot-&-sour noodles 酸辣粉 | 吞食獸 (Kuaishou) | 河南優品優客 | Aerobic plate count |
| 11 | Microbial | Mala chicken wings 椒麻雞翅 | 重慶渝贛緣 | 重慶森升香食品 | Aerobic plate count |
| 21 | Microbial | Camel-milk formula (w/ theanine) 駝乳粉 | 駝之養 (Tmall) | 蒙帝乳業 | Lactic-acid bacteria (+ vit C label) |
| 16 | Detergent | Self-sanitised tableware 粉碟 | 湖北爭鮮 Wuhan branch | — | Anionic detergent residue |
| 17 | Below spec | White vinegar 白醋 | 星城行 (Pinduoduo) | 湖南美味爽 | Total acid too low |
| 18 | Below spec | Sweet-potato vinegar 紅薯醋 | 河南地方特產 (Douyin) | 開封地康 | Non-volatile acid |
| 19 | Below spec | Goat-milk powder 羊奶粉 | 錦吉食品 (Douyin) | — | Protein, fat below standard |
| 29 | Below spec | Millet baijiu 小米酒 | Ürümqi supermarket | 伊州春酒廠 | Alcohol % vs label |
| 30 | Below spec | Oat soda crackers 莜麥蘇打餅乾 | 山西樂村淘 | 山西鄉村味 | Sugar vs label |
| 32 | Below spec | Solid drink 化酸飲 | 康美 (Bozhou) | 安徽三義堂 | Sugar vs label |
| 20 | Label mismatch | Tea 綠山九牌糖泰茶 | 樺康醫藥 (Taobao) | 桂之健 (Guangxi) | Moisture |
| 22 | Label mismatch | Calcium+D3 special drink 雙鈣＋D3特膳飲 | Guangzhou baby-goods store | 江西沃寶健康 | Vitamin D (std & label) |
| 23 | Label mismatch | Multivitamin/minerals 多種維生素礦物質 | 廣州依賀 (Pinduoduo) | 安徽德善堂 | B6 / A / B1 / E / Se / Cu |
| 24 | Label mismatch | Glucosamine + VD calcium tablets | 松貓富立樂 (Pinduoduo) | 安徽御康藥業 | B1 / B2 / vit D / calcium |
| 25 | Label mismatch | Folate multi-vit/mineral tablets (pregnancy/lactation) | 上醫御本 (Tmall) | 洛陽眾康 | Selenium |
| 26 | Label mismatch | Whey protein isolate 分離乳清蛋白粉 | 新疆駝奶直供店 (Taobao) | 安徽初乳 | Sodium |
| 27 | Label mismatch | Amino-acid ox-spleen peptide drink | Qingdao mother-baby store | 山東康美藥業 | Sodium |
| 31 | Label mismatch | Amino-acid special dietary food (NZ import) | Yichang baby-goods store | Universal Pharmaceuticals (NZ) | Pantothenic acid (importer disputed; verified NOT their import) |
| 33 | Label mismatch | Heme iron gummies 血紅素鐵軟糖 | 星川醫藥 (Pinduoduo) | 安徽潤楓 | Iron |
| 34 | Label mismatch | ELECTRO X electrolyte drink | Metro 麥德龍 Zhengzhou | 宿遷匯源 | Niacin |
| 35 | Label mismatch | Whole camel-milk powder 全脂駝乳粉 | 南京源盛 | 內蒙古英格蘇 | Vitamin C, choline |
| 36 | Label mismatch | Goat-milk lion's-mane yam biscuit | 中顏醫學研究 (Tmall) | 沂水福興源 | Calcium |
| 37 | Label mismatch | Probiotic high-calcium camel-milk powder | 中老年營養店 (Pinduoduo) | 河南臻品優膳 | Calcium |
＊Item 31: the importer (廣東大新實業) disputed authenticity; Guangdong regulators verified and accepted that this batch was not imported by them.
What parents can do
- Check what you have: if you recently bought any of the above on a mainland platform (especially matcha powder, camel/goat milk powder, honey, pistachios/dried apricots), match the brand and producer and retire anything that matches.
- Choose tested matcha: for kids' matcha drinks/baking, pick branded matcha powder with a heavy-metals test report — not the cheapest unbranded option.
- Cross-border / daigou foods need the most care: platform-shipped foods often skip Hong Kong inspection. For formula, special-dietary and supplements you give a baby or child, favour products sold locally through proper import channels.
- Remember this is routine: the mainland publishes a notice like this every month. It doesn't mean all mainland food is unsafe — it's a reminder that cheap, cross-border, unknown-origin items deserve a second look.
Sources
-
State Administration for Market Regulation (国家市场监督管理总局). (23 June 2026). Notice on 37 batches of food found unsatisfactory in sampling (市监食检发〔2026〕73号). samr.gov.cn ↩↩
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