The Restrictions of Mukbang Content in China to Reduce Food Waste
What do you think about mukbangs and overconsumption?
According to an article published on South China Morning Post, the Cyberspace Administration of China shut down about 13,600 mukbang social media accounts to mitigate food waste for its “Clean Plate Campaign”. Additionally, an article on BBC states that Chinese mukbangs were publicly criticized on Chinese television channels, like CCTV, and claims that people who even search “eating show”, “eating Livestream”, or anything similar will be given warning notices by the government.
My initial thoughts? I think mitigating food waste is essential, particularly in highly populated countries, but China’s surveillance and regulation of content are concerning. China blocks several websites based in the United States, including Instagram, Google, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, several other social media websites, various news publications, and even Wikipedia which is what I used to find that information. A separate BBC article claims that the amount of food waste collected in China equates to enough food to feed between 30 and 50 million people a year. I think it’s fascinating that a government would target mukbang as a cause of such an urgent, global issue.How much do mukbangs really contribute to this problem?
Sources/Articles Mentioned:
South China Morning Post: https://www.scmp.com/tech/apps-social/article/3100105/chinas-internet-watchdog-shuts-down-13600-mukbang-accounts
BBC 1: https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-53840167
BBC 2: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-53761295
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_websites_blocked_in_mainland_China
