Restaurants have to take poppy seedpod seasoning away from pots

AT LEAST 35 RESTAURANTS selling popular dishes and snacks were found to have used the powdered shells of poppy seedpods as seasoning, according to the China Food and Drug Administration, the country's top food safety regulator, on Thursday. The Administration said the poppy derivatives it detected included morphine and codeine. The owners of 25 restaurants are being investigated by public security departments, with the other 10 being investigated by the CFDA. Beijing Youth Daily says stricter supervision is needed to curb the use of seasonings derived from poppy seedpods in food:

That 35 restaurants have reportedly been caught adding the powdered shells of poppy seedpods to their food as seasoning, points to the worrying fact that similar misconduct exists elsewhere, even in some first-tier cities, including Beijing and Shanghai.

As opium is a drug that can cause addiction and serious harm to consumers' health, using opium poppies in food is banned in China, yet some restaurant owners who want to "enhance" the flavor of their dishes still add the powdered shells of poppy seedpods to "improve the customer experience".