CCTV Exposes Bleached 'Toxic Chicken Feet' – Workers: We Never Eat Them

Chicken feet, especially popular in the Sichuan and Chongqing regions of China, often sell tens of thousands of portions online thanks to their pristine white appearance and low price, becoming a favorite among young consumers.

However, the CCTV '3·15' Gala investigation revealed a shocking truth: these seemingly enticing snow-white chicken feet are produced in foul-smelling, filthy environments. Even more alarming, unscrupulous manufacturers are illegally using industrial-grade hydrogen peroxide to bleach the chicken feet during processing.

According to CCTV Finance, reporters investigating in the Sichuan-Chongqing region found that the production environments of many factories, which claim vast daily sales, were appalling: In the food processing workshops, the soaking, trimming, and sorting areas were filled with an overwhelming stench, the pungent fishy odor making people nauseous.

Moreover, sewage flowed across the factory floor, various types of plastic crates were piled up haphazardly, and equipment surfaces were coated in thick grime and oil. The chicken feet awaiting processing were dumped directly on dirty floors, with brooms and iron shovels carelessly placed atop the raw materials. Even when chicken feet were stepped on, workers would simply pick them up and put them back into the processing bins.

More shockingly, these companies routinely use hydrogen peroxide—a substance strictly banned in China—for 'bleaching' the chicken feet.

CCTV reporters going undercover at enterprises such as Mingyang Food in Chengdu, Shufuxiang Food, and Chongqing Zengqiao Food discovered that although the environment was extremely unsanitary, the chicken feet bleached with hydrogen peroxide still looked enticingly clean and white. As one worker admitted: 'The chicken feet are only that white because we add hydrogen peroxide.' Another worker candidly confessed, 'We never eat it ourselves, and I advise you not to either.'

It is understood that hydrogen peroxide, as a strong oxidizer, destroys proteins and other nutrients when used in food processing, masking spoilage and decay. Consuming it over time can damage the mucous membranes in the mouth and impair liver and kidney function; overdoses may even be life-threatening. China's National Food Safety Standard for Food Additive Use clearly states that hydrogen peroxide cannot be used in the processing of chicken feet.

The report points out that the hydrogen peroxide mainly comes from companies such as Jinshan Pharmaceutical in Meishan, Sichuan, and Yifeng Electronic New Materials in Xinxiang, Henan. To evade regulation, suppliers even instruct customers to use 'disinfectant' labels to cover it up. Furthermore, Jinshan Pharmaceutical staff sold hydrogen peroxide to food processors without any verification.

On March 13, the National Administration for Market Regulation organized enforcement teams across multiple regions to launch raids. At the site of Shufuxiang, they seized 27 barrels of hydrogen peroxide food additive and sealed 551 boxes of problematic chicken feet. Evidence of hydrogen peroxide soaking was also found at Zengqiao Food, with finished products testing positive for hydrogen peroxide. The companies and their upstream suppliers are now under official investigation. (Source: Hong Kong 01)