Milk Tea Shop in China Shut Down After Employee Seen Soaking Feet in Drink Toppings
Shenzhen, China -โ A milk tea shop in Shenzhen, China, has beenโ temporarily closed and an employee detained โafter a videoโฃ circulated โฃonline showingโ the worker immersing their feet in a barrel of drink toppings and handling ingredients with bare hands. The incident sparked โคimmediate publicโข outrage and a swift responseโค from โlocalโค authorities.
The video, which surfacedโค on social media platforms,โค prompted โan immediate investigation by the Longhwasukgu district authorities. โคAccording to reports from local media outlets like Hangzhou ilbo, the employee committed the hygiene violations on March 17th, shortly โafter beginning employment on March 16th. The shop voluntarily reported theโ incident to police andโค discarded all cooking equipment and materials.
The Shenzhen Longhwasukgu authorities confirmed the employee has been placed under administrative detention byโ public securityโค officials. this incident underscores growing concerns about food safety standards within the rapidly expanding Chinese beverage industryโค and follows a similar hygiene scandal earlier this year atโ a Shanghai hot pot franchise.
In February, Heidirao, a popular hot pot chain, faced โคbacklash after a videoโข showed two teenagers walking on tables in โtheir dining area with shoes on. Heidirao responded by replacing โคall tableware, โrefunding meals to overโค 4,000 customers, โand providing 10 million โขyuan (approximately $1.4 million USD) in compensation. A Shanghai court โlater ruled thatโ the parents of the teenagers were responsible for 220,000 yuan (approximately $31,000 USD) in damages for failing to properly supervise their children.