On June 8th, the joint investigation team in Tianshui City, Gansu Province, China, released a report on the investigation and handling of the issue of abnormal blood lead levels among children at Peixin Kindergarten in Maiji District, Tianshui City. The report stated that as of 10:00 PM on the 7th, all 251 children at Peixin Kindergarten in Maiji District, Tianshui City, had been tested. According to blood lead standards, 233 people were found to have abnormal blood lead levels, while 18 were normal. Currently, the local public security authorities have criminally detained Zhu Moulin, Li Moufang, and six others on suspicion of producing toxic and harmful food, and have imposed compulsory measures of bail pending trial on two other people.
As for officials who failed in supervision or were derelict in their duties, the local discipline inspection and supervisory authorities have launched an investigation and will strictly pursue accountability in accordance with regulations, discipline, and law.
Additionally, sampling and testing results from Weibei Kindergarten, Ciai Kindergarten, and Mondiai Kindergarten, all of which are associated with Peixin Kindergarten, have all come back normal. At present, local relevant departments have formed an expert group to carry out medical treatment.
Recently, the lead poisoning incident among children in Tianshui, Gansu, attracted public attention. At Heshi Peixin Kindergarten in Maiji District, it was revealed that dozens of young children had excessive blood lead levels, and there were even cases where a parent and child were tested simultaneously, resulting in the child's blood lead value being more than 11 times that of the parent. According to a report cited by CCTV News, after testing 223 samples including food leftovers, 221 samples were qualified, while 2 samples from Peixin Kindergarten were found unqualified.
One of these was a breakfast three-colored red date sponge cake leftover sample, and the other was a dinner corn sausage bread leftover sample. The lead content in the two samples was 1,052 mg/kg and 1,340 mg/kg, both greatly exceeding the national food safety standard for contaminants in food, which is limited to 0.5 mg/kg.
According to the investigation, the kindergarten principal Zhu Moulin and investor Li Moufang agreed to allow kitchen staff to purchase colored paints through an online platform, dilute them, and use them in some food production. In the early morning of June 3rd, police seized the remaining paints that had been hidden, and after testing, it was confirmed the paint contained lead (with packaging clearly marked as inedible).