A kindergarten owner in China has been sentenced to life imprisonment after hundreds of children and staff were exposed to dangerous levels of lead from contaminated food served at the school. The court also handed lengthy prison sentences to the kindergarten’s executive principal and four kitchen workers over the deliberate addition of toxic substances to meals prepared for young pupils.
Li Huifang, who operated Heshi Peixin Kindergarten in Tianshui, Gansu province, was sentenced by the Lanzhou Intermediate People’s Court on Friday, October 16, 2026. She was also fined 500,000 yuan and ordered to forfeit personal assets of the same value, according to reports citing Chinese state media.
The kindergarten’s executive principal, Zhu Jinglin, received a 15-year prison sentence and a 300,000-yuan fine. Four kitchen staff members were sentenced to between six and eight years in prison.
The case dates back to July 2025, when children attending the private kindergarten began experiencing health problems and medical tests revealed abnormally high blood lead levels. Investigators subsequently discovered that food had been contaminated with lead-containing pigment, which was allegedly added to make meals appear more attractive.
The scandal has raised serious concerns about food safety, the protection of young children, institutional accountability and allegations that attempts were made to conceal the extent of the poisoning.
How the Poisoning Was Discovered
The incident occurred at Heshi Peixin Kindergarten in Tianshui, a city in northwestern China’s Gansu province.
In July 2025, children attending the nursery began falling ill. Parents became increasingly concerned as several children developed symptoms that prompted medical examinations. Testing eventually revealed that numerous pupils had abnormally high concentrations of lead in their blood.
Reports indicated that approximately 247 pupils and staff members were found to have abnormal blood lead levels. More than 200 children were affected, while 235 children reportedly required medical treatment for lead poisoning.
The findings triggered an investigation into the kindergarten’s food preparation practices and the source of the contamination.
Investigators discovered that kitchen workers had been adding lead-containing pigment to food served at the school. The substance was not suitable for consumption, and its packaging reportedly carried warnings that it was inedible.
The court found that the kindergarten’s operator and executive principal had instructed kitchen staff to add toxic and harmful substances to food consumed by pupils and employees.
The investigation transformed what initially appeared to be a serious public-health incident into a criminal case involving the deliberate contamination of meals served to young children.
Inedible Paint Used to Make Food Look More Attractive
One of the most disturbing findings was the alleged reason behind the contamination.
According to reports of the court’s findings, kitchen workers used lead-containing pigment to enhance the appearance of meals. The intention was to make the food look more appealing and help attract additional students to the kindergarten.
The affected dishes reportedly included steamed red date cakes and sausage corn buns.
Investigators found extraordinarily high concentrations of lead in samples of these foods. The red date cakes reportedly contained approximately 1,052 milligrams of lead per kilogram, while the sausage corn buns contained about 1,340 milligrams per kilogram.
China’s national food safety limit for lead cited in the reports was 0.5 milligrams per kilogram.
These results placed the contamination far beyond the permitted level. The findings helped establish the seriousness of the food safety violations and the risks posed to the children who consumed the meals.
The court concluded that the school’s management and kitchen workers had participated in the production or serving of toxic and harmful food.
The case has prompted widespread outrage because the contamination was not described simply as an accidental mistake involving ingredients. The court found that substances explicitly unsuitable for consumption had been introduced into food intended for children.
Life Sentence for Kindergarten Operator
Li Huifang, the kindergarten’s operator, received the harshest punishment among the six people sentenced.
The Lanzhou Intermediate People’s Court sentenced her to life imprisonment for producing and selling toxic and harmful food. She was also fined 500,000 yuan, with reports stating that assets of the same value were ordered to be confiscated.
The sentence reflects the gravity of the offence, which exposed a large number of children to a toxic heavy metal through meals served in an educational setting.
Zhu Jinglin, the kindergarten’s executive principal, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and fined 300,000 yuan.
Four additional defendants who worked in the kindergarten’s kitchen received prison terms ranging from six to eight years.
According to reports of the judgment, the kitchen workers had been instructed by Li and Zhu to add harmful substances to the food.
The six sentences represent the principal criminal punishments reported in connection with the case. They also send a strong message about the legal consequences of deliberately compromising food safety, particularly when the victims are young children who depend on adults and institutions for their protection.
Children Face Serious Health Risks From Lead Exposure
Lead is a toxic heavy metal that can damage multiple organs and is particularly dangerous to children because their brains and nervous systems are still developing.
According to the World Health Organization, lead exposure can affect neurological development, reduce intellectual performance and cause behavioural and learning difficulties. High exposure can also damage the kidneys and other organs.
Children may be exposed to lead through contaminated food and water, lead-containing paint, dust, soil and certain consumer products. In this case, investigators linked the contamination to pigment deliberately added to meals at the kindergarten.
The effects of lead poisoning depend on factors including the amount absorbed, the duration of exposure and the individual child’s health. Some effects may persist even after exposure has stopped.
The consequences can be especially concerning when exposure occurs repeatedly, because lead can accumulate in the body.
Children with lead exposure may not always show obvious symptoms immediately. When symptoms do occur, they can include abdominal pain, nausea, fatigue, irritability and other problems. More severe exposure can cause significant neurological and physical harm.
Medical assessment and appropriate follow-up are therefore important for affected children. A child’s long-term outlook cannot be determined solely from a single blood test or from the fact that symptoms have improved.
The kindergarten case has drawn attention to the responsibility of schools and childcare providers to ensure that all ingredients, additives and food preparation materials are safe for human consumption.
Allegations of a Cover-Up Deepen the Scandal
The poisoning case attracted further controversy after investigators examined how the incident had been handled by local institutions.
Reports published during the investigation described allegations that some officials and medical personnel had manipulated blood-test results and that bribes had been offered in an effort to conceal the seriousness of the contamination.
The allegations raised questions about whether warning signs were adequately investigated and whether the families of affected children received reliable information early enough.
Some parents sought additional medical testing after becoming dissatisfied with the information available to them. Independent testing helped expose the scale of the problem and increased pressure for a comprehensive investigation.
Authorities subsequently examined the conduct of officials connected with education, public health, disease control and local regulatory bodies. Earlier reports also described disciplinary investigations involving local officials.
These wider accountability issues are distinct from the criminal sentences handed down to the six kindergarten defendants. The life sentence and other prison terms relate to the reported food contamination offences, while allegations concerning officials and medical institutions involved separate questions of responsibility.
The controversy has intensified public concern about whether regulatory systems are effective when institutions fail to comply with safety requirements or when people responsible for oversight are suspected of concealing violations.
Government Introduces Tighter Rules for School Meals
The scandal has also prompted attention to food safety procedures in Chinese schools and kindergartens.
Following the incident, China published national guidelines aimed at strengthening the management and safety of meals provided on school campuses.
Reported measures include requiring new batches of food to be tested and directing schools to purchase staples such as flour, rice and cooking oil through centralised procurement points.
The purpose of these measures is to improve traceability, strengthen supervision and reduce opportunities for unsafe ingredients to enter school kitchens.
However, the effectiveness of such rules depends on consistent implementation. Testing requirements are only useful when samples are handled properly, results are reported honestly and violations trigger timely action.
Schools also need reliable systems for inspecting suppliers, recording ingredients, supervising kitchen staff and responding quickly when children become ill.
The Tianshui case demonstrates how serious the consequences can be when food safety responsibilities are disregarded. It also illustrates why parents need confidence that childcare facilities are operating under effective inspection and accountability systems.
Parents and the Public Demand Accountability
The discovery that meals intended for young children had been contaminated with lead caused widespread anger and anxiety.
Parents entrust kindergartens with their children’s safety during the school day, including the food they eat. When that trust is broken, families may face not only immediate medical concerns but also uncertainty about possible long-term consequences.
The incident has also highlighted the difficulties families can encounter when trying to obtain reliable medical information during a public-health emergency.
For affected households, the criminal sentences provide an important measure of accountability. However, punishment alone cannot reverse any damage caused by lead exposure or eliminate the need for long-term medical monitoring.
Families may continue to require medical guidance, clear information about their children’s test results and support in understanding potential developmental consequences.
The case has also become a broader warning about the importance of transparent investigations. Where contamination is suspected, prompt disclosure and independent verification can help protect children and prevent further exposure.
Why the Case Matters Beyond China
The poisoning at Heshi Peixin Kindergarten is a stark reminder that food safety failures in schools can have consequences far beyond the kitchen.
Children are particularly vulnerable because they depend on adults to select safe ingredients, prepare meals correctly and respond when something goes wrong.
The deliberate use of an inedible, lead-containing pigment also underscores the importance of strict controls over chemicals and materials used in food preparation environments.
For governments and education authorities worldwide, the case highlights several priorities: routine food inspections, safe procurement systems, independent laboratory testing, prompt reporting of suspected contamination and effective punishment for serious violations.
It also shows why public-health agencies must be able to investigate suspected poisoning without interference and why parents should receive accurate information when children may have been exposed to toxic substances.
The World Health Organization has repeatedly warned that lead exposure is a significant environmental health threat. Preventing exposure is especially important because no level of lead exposure is considered completely safe.
What Happens Next?
The criminal sentences mark a major development in the case, but questions remain about the long-term health needs of the affected children and the broader institutional failures uncovered during the investigation.
Families may require continued medical follow-up to assess the effects of exposure, while authorities must ensure that school meal regulations are enforced consistently.
Further accountability measures concerning officials or medical personnel implicated in alleged irregularities depend on the outcomes of the relevant investigations and proceedings.
The case is likely to remain a reference point in discussions about school food safety, regulatory oversight and the protection of children in educational institutions.
The central lesson is clear: meals served to children must never be compromised for appearance, profit or any other reason. The sentencing of the kindergarten operator, principal and kitchen workers underscores the seriousness with which the court treated the deliberate introduction of toxic substances into food.
Conclusion: The life sentence handed to the operator of Heshi Peixin Kindergarten marks a major legal development in one of China’s most disturbing recent school food safety scandals. The case highlights the potentially lasting health consequences of lead exposure, the need for effective oversight and the responsibility of educational institutions to protect the children in their care.
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