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Footage released by Chinese state media allegedly showed chefs adding paint pigment to food. (Supplied: China Central Television)
In short:
The operator, principal and four kitchen staff at a kindergarten in China have been jailed.
More than 200 students were found to have abnormally high blood lead levels in July 2025.
The court found the staff had added toxic and harmful substances to the children's food.
The operator of a kindergarten and several staff members have been jailed for serving tainted food that caused lead poisoning in more than 200 students in China.
In July 2025, about 247 students and more than 20 staff members were found to have abnormally high blood lead levels, with media reports saying the school added inedible, lead-containing pigments to the food for visual appeal.
On Friday, the Lanzhou Intermediate People’s Court found that the kindergarten's operator and principal had instructed four kitchen workers to add toxic, harmful substances to food consumed by young children and kindergarten staff.
The paint helped make the food look brighter. (Supplied: Red Note)
Li Huifang, who operated the Heshi Peixin Kindergarten in the city of Tianshui in Gansu province, was sentenced to life in prison over the incident.
The court also ordered the confiscation of her personal assets worth about 500,000 yuan ($107,000), according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.
The court also sentenced Zhu Jinglin, the kindergarten’s executive principal, to 15 years in jail along with a 300,000 yuan ($65,000) fine.
CCTV reported that the four others who worked in the kindergarten kitchen were jailed for six to eight years for the crime.
High levels of lead exposure can damage a child’s brain and nervous system.
The day before the sentence, the World Health Organization urged countries to do more to prevent lead exposure, with hundreds of millions of children affected internationally.
"Lead poisoning is one of the world's most serious yet overlooked environmental health threats," Bruce Gordon, head of the WHO's environment department, said on Thursday.
The WHO said exposure could occur through paint, cookware, cosmetics, spices, and industrial contamination.
AP