After the death of a Chinese celebrity because of it.. What is `mukbang`? And why did China declare a war on it?

Arab Weather - China announced last week a strict campaign targeting celebrities and live broadcasters who participate in challenges to eat large quantities of food live on social media platforms. This campaign comes within the framework of issuing new guidelines aimed at combating "food waste," according to what was reported by the British newspaper "The Telegraph."

Celebrity death while eating

Last July, Pan Xiaoting, a 24-year-old Chinese woman, died during a live broadcast from overeating. Xiaoting, a mukbang host who specializes in online food shows where the host consumes varying amounts of food while interacting with the audience, was overweight and was known for eating large amounts of food during her live broadcasts, which lasted for more than 10 hours a day, consuming more than 10 kilograms of food in each broadcast.

• Food challenges worry government

Last May, a popular food blogger named Meris took on a challenge to eat 100 skewers of spicy chicken, along with large amounts of potatoes and noodles, during a livestream. After hours of trying, Meris gave up and asked the waiter to remove the excess food, resulting in a huge amount of food waste. Although Meris’ challenges have attracted 300,000 subscribers on YouTube, they have drawn the ire of the Chinese government.

• Chinese authorities impose new restrictions

Beijing has issued a 31-point guideline to regulate “view-driven videos,” with an explicit warning against “wasting food.” It’s not yet clear how the regulations will affect thousands of mukbang influencers, but it’s clear that there’s a move toward stricter restrictions on this type of content.

Until now, videos of mukbangs can be found on Chinese social media platforms such as Weibo and Douyun. However, the Chinese Communist Party’s decision to impose restrictions on 15.8 million professional live streamers and influencers comes amid an ongoing economic slowdown, The Telegraph reported.

Prohibition of showing off wealth

Previously, the Chinese Communist Party banned the posting of any content that flaunted lavish wealth, such as Wang Hongquanxing, known as the “Kim Kardashian of China,” who flaunted jewelry worth more than $1.4 million. In 2021, China imposed an anti-food waste law that bans vloggers from producing videos of overeating online, with fines of up to 100,000 yuan (about $14,000).

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