Here we go again - Japan’s ministry of health has ordered its retailers to stop distribution of all frozen beans imported from China, after a woman fell ill eating beans with 34,500 times the legal limit of pesticides. The woman is fine - she checked in to the hospital after vomiting and feeling “numbness in her mouth” after eating a dish made with the beans, and was released following an overnight stay, but given the recent milk powder debacle, the ministry of health wanted to take no chances.

Tests by the Tokyo government revealed the high pesticide content of the beans, which were manufactured by Yantai Beihai Foodstuff in Shandong Province in eastern China. Investigation results showed no problems in the manufacturing process, as the detected pesticide (dichlorvos) has never even been used by the company, deeming the contaminated batch of beans an isolated incident.

Here’s where the story gets even weirder - a pinprick was found in the package, suggesting that the beans may have been sabotaged after leaving the manufacturer. It’s unlikely that the pesticides would have remained in such high concentration had it been a manufacturing error, as the beans are washed and boiled before being frozen, which would have likely diluted any residual pesticides.

Is somebody deliberately trying to soil China’s reputation? While the government has cleared Yantai of any wrongdoing, the damage has already been done, in the wake of toxic toys, deadly dumplings, and the malignant milk powder. It’s clear that Chinese manufacturers need to get their act together and prioritize the safety of their products over the extra bit of profit margin, but deliberate acts of culinary terrorism isn’t helping the cause.