“That bite hurt my teeth.” DotDot recalls the meal from two months ago, still feeling uneasy. She was eating a bag of frozen water dumplings, a brand she had trusted for a long time—Sanquan. When she spat out a piece of hard plastic about the size of a fingernail, it was stuck to the meat filling.

From January to February this year, similar complaints flooded social media platforms: consumers found plastic in Sanquan shrimp dumplings purchased at snack shops; others found a bendable but breakable plastic piece about the size of a fingernail in Sanquan Zhuangyuan dumplings bought at supermarkets; some consumers discovered foreign objects in pork and mushroom dumplings purchased offline, with children having already eaten them.

On Black Cat Complaint Platform, searching for “Sanquan Food,” there have been over 600 complaints, many pointing to food safety issues. Lawyer Zhang Jian from Beijing Zhuohao Law Firm told Phoenix Weekly Finance that dozens of recent complaints about Sanquan, combined with over a hundred complaints on Black Cat Platform mainly related to food safety, form a statistically significant sample, “from a legal perspective, far exceeding normal probability.”

Phoenix Weekly Finance contacted Sanquan Food regarding these issues but received no response as of press time.

Consumers Quickly Receive Refunds After Complaints

DotDot remembers clearly—it was an ordinary dinner.

She took a whole dumpling into her mouth, and while chewing, she suddenly felt a hard object, realizing it was a piece of hard plastic about the size of a fingernail. But she had already eaten most of the dumplings. She immediately contacted the seller—a online delivery platform—and received compensation. However, DotDot told Phoenix Weekly Finance that she suspects Sanquan’s production line is unhygienic and non-compliant.

Two months ago, Xiao Xiao also bit into a black, hard foreign object in Sanquan pork and chive dumplings, which chipped her tooth. She contacted Sanquan’s official flagship store. She bought six packs of dumplings, but initially the seller only offered a refund for one pack. When she insisted on “verifying the foreign object material,” the seller quickly agreed to a full refund.

No testing suggestions or traceability procedures were provided; the issue was quickly “resolved.” The remaining dumplings were discarded after a few days at home. “Thinking back, if I hadn’t thrown them away, maybe I could have tested them,” Xiao Xiao told Phoenix Weekly Finance, but concerns about time, effort, and complex rights protection processes led her to give up.

From DotDot and Xiao Xiao’s experiences, Sanquan quickly refunded and closed the case. But when mistakes happen, how is responsibility traced, and how are loopholes fixed? Who should bear the costs consumers pay?

Tianyuan Law Firm partner lawyer Li Yunkai explained that Article 34 of the Food Safety Law clearly states that production and operation of “spoiled, rancid, moldy, infested, dirty, foreign object contaminated, adulterated, or with abnormal sensory characteristics” foods are prohibited.

“We understand that plastic pieces in water dumplings are relatively typical foreign objects, but in specific cases, it still requires comprehensive judgment—whether the production operator intentionally caused it or if it resulted from failure to meet food standards in raw materials and process control. Enforcement standards are not entirely uniform in practice,” Li Yunkai said.

He pointed out that if the foreign object is confirmed, according to Article 148 of the Food Safety Law, consumers can request compensation for actual losses, or demand ten times the price or three times the damages from producers or operators; if the increased compensation is less than 1,000 yuan, it is set at 1,000 yuan.

Not the First Food Safety Incident

This is not the first time Sanquan Food has come under public scrutiny for food safety issues. Past incidents include the 2019 African swine fever nucleic acid positive event, the 2017 over-standard coliform count in zongzi (rice dumplings), and the 2011 detection of Staphylococcus aureus, all of which put this frozen food giant in the spotlight.

However, Sanquan’s record of administrative penalties related to food safety is rare. According to Tianyancha, Sanquan Food, as a company, has zero administrative penalty records.

From the company’s disclosed “Food Safety Risks and Response Measures,” the main focus is on cold chain storage and transportation, specifically that “product temperature rise during thawing can cause spoilage and mold.” Sanquan states it has established a comprehensive product traceability system, using multi-point intelligent temperature monitoring devices and electronic labels to monitor warehouse and refrigerated vehicle temperatures.

Li Yunkai said that multiple similar foreign object complaints across different product lines and channels in a short period are unlikely to be coincidental. They more likely reveal vulnerabilities in the company’s production and quality control systems, such as aging equipment or management lapses. He recommends internal investigations and strict controls to prevent similar incidents, or the company could face administrative and civil liabilities.

Performance Under Pressure, New Plans for 2026

Public information shows that Sanquan Food is one of the leading companies in China’s frozen food industry, with annual revenue around 7 to 8 billion yuan in recent years, and net profit attributable to shareholders maintained between 500 million and 700 million yuan.

In recent years, Sanquan’s revenue and profit growth have slowed or even declined. The 2025 semi-annual report shows revenue of 3.57 billion yuan, down 2.7% year-over-year; net profit of 313 million yuan, down 5.98%; and a negative operating cash flow of 191 million yuan, a decrease of 160.3%.

Regarding the decline in performance, Sanquan explained in its annual report that industry slowdown and intense competition in product categories have put pressure on its results.

While facing performance pressures, Sanquan is also trying to expand into new business areas.

According to recent investor relations activity records, the company has launched new products such as dumplings, tangyuan (sweet rice balls), and grilled sausages, and continues to develop hotpot ingredients like meat rolls and meatballs, as well as Western-style products like pasta. On the distribution side, it cooperates with online platforms for instant retail. Additionally, Sanquan obtained an “Overseas Investment Certificate,” with subsidiaries registered in Hong Kong, the Cayman Islands, and Australia, and overseas investment plans are underway.

(Names DotDot and Xiao Xiao are pseudonyms at the request of interviewees.)