E-Paper
China nursery owner jailed for life after poisoning over 200 children with toxic paint
A nursery owner in China has been sentenced to life in prison after it was found that she had been adding toxic paint to children’s food to enhance its look
Prefer HTon Google
A nursery owner in China has been sentenced to life in prison after it was discovered that she had been adding toxic paint to children’s food to enhance its look. Li Huifang, the owner of a nursery school in Gansu province, was found to have poisoned more than 200 children with lead.
According to Chinese state media, five employees of Li Huifang also received jail terms.
For more context
In July 2025, children at the Heshi Peixin Kindergarten in Tianshui began falling ill after eating food at the school. Their lab reports revealed they had abnormally high blood lead levels. All in all, around 247 members of staff and students took ill.
An investigation revealed that cooks at the nursery had used inedible paint to "enhance the look" of the meals and make them more appealing to children.
(Also read: More than 200 children suffer lead poisoning from food at a Chinese kindergarten)
Lead in food
Chinese state media said that the staff and students began to fall ill after eating steamed red date cakes and sausage corn buns. Investigators found that the red date cakes had lead levels 1052mg/kg. The sausage corn buns had 1340mg/kg of lead.
This is far above the limit of 0.5mg/kg allowed by Chinese law. In fact, the food samples were found to contain lead 2,000 times in excess of China's national safety limit.
(Also read: Lead poisoning: An invisible public health emergency)
According to the World Health Organisation, lead poisoning can “severely damage the brain and central nervous system”.
Nursery owner and staff sentenced
The investigation also found that an investor in the nursery attempted to cover up the crime by bribing dozens of hospital staff and provincial officials to tamper with the blood test results of the patients.
While Li Huifang, who operated the Heshi Peixin Kindergarten, was sentenced to life in prison, executive principal Zhi Jinglin was sentenced to 15 years in prison and a fine of 30,000 yuan.
In addition, the Lanzhou Intermediate People's Court also directed the confiscation of 500,000 yuan worth of Li’s personal assets.
The court also found that Li and Zhi had ordered four staffers to add toxic paint to the food. Those four staffers received between six to eight years in prison.
