I have been studying traditional culture for over a year. In April this year, I happened to return to my hometown and was greeted by the aroma of fried food wafting through the streets. It reminded me of a period two years ago when I was in the fried chicken and duck business—a time I can hardly bear to look back on. Therefore, I decided to write about some unforgettable experiences, hoping to share them with anyone around the world who might come across this article. The torment of my conscience has kept me awake night after night! If you believe this could truly benefit your friends and family, please spread the word so that we may avoid falling into the endless trap of indulging in the allure of taste and aroma, unable to break free...

A few years ago, I once ate meat and, for some reason, felt nauseous and vomited severely. After that, I never ate meat again and felt indifferent even when seeing others eat it. Just like that, four years passed. However, that day while walking around, I was suddenly enticed by the smell of fried chicken, as if struck by an "epiphany." A thought emerged in my mind: I must start this business; it will surely make a fortune! If even someone who doesn’t eat meat feels this way, how much more so for those who do?

This feeling urged me on, and seemingly without much thought, I opened a small franchise shop after just three days of learning the so-called "technique." In reality, what technique was there? It was simply about taking pre-slaughtered and pre-cut chickens and ducks, marinating them using the taught method. The marinating process was essentially adding additives. After marinating overnight, they were ready to be fried the next day.

**Marinating**

At first, following the method taught by the franchise, the fried chicken and duck didn’t taste as flavorful as theirs. Buying pre-marinated chickens and ducks from the franchise didn’t leave much profit. It was only later that I gradually realized the issue lay in the marinating process—the seasonings used were different. The franchise was primarily selling the seasoning materials.

After receiving advice from someone in the know, I understood: apart from the traditional ingredients like Sichuan pepper, star anise, dried tangerine peel, cinnamon, and nearly 20 other visible plant-based seasonings (which were deliberately displayed floating in the oil vat for show), the real essence lay in the additives added to about 100 chickens—bone marrow paste, tenderizer, leavening agent, color enhancer, flavor enhancer, sweetener (something 60 times sweeter than saccharin), a certain brown substance containing poppy shell powder, and over a dozen other chemical and industrial substances whose exact nature was unclear. Especially the bone marrow paste—after about 8 hours of soaking, the bones of the chickens and ducks were thoroughly infused with flavor. Finally, 5 pounds of MSG were added. This way, when people ate it, they found the bones crispy and the flavor rich, making them crave more and unable to forget it. The most unbelievable part was the enticing aroma, which came from a highly volatile oily agent. A small amount was poured into the frying oil daily, and when the oil heated up, the smell could be detected from 200 meters or even farther away.

Every day, there were long lines of people buying chickens and ducks, and during holidays, the demand far exceeded supply. Chickens were sold for 12 yuan, and ducks for 15 yuan—truly "affordable and delicious"! Some people bought them as gifts for parents and friends. In a city with a population of about 1 million, over 30 such small shops quickly opened. (Not long after, an avian flu outbreak occurred—truly a divine retribution!) As a civil servant, frying chickens and ducks was my side business. Watching friends, neighbors, colleagues, and various familiar faces buy chickens and ducks, my heart was filled with mixed emotions—joy at the booming business, but worry that this was not an honest way to make a living. Soon, misfortune befell my own family.

What worried me most was my own child. Knowing full well that eating these chickens and ducks was harmful, I couldn’t resist my child’s constant demands to eat them. I thought to myself, "Just a little bit shouldn’t be a big deal."To prevent the child from crying, I initially limited them to eating only one chicken a week, but that was impossible. The smell was too tempting, and the child couldn't resist, eating more and more. My heart gradually tightened with worry.

Later, whenever the child clamored to eat, I would simply marinate chicken or duck with just a bit of salt, without any additives, and fry it for them as a consolation. It was only later that I learned these chickens and ducks were raised for just 21 to 28 days before being sold, fat and large. At the time, I didn't understand why the thigh bones of these chickens broke so easily during marination. How were these chickens, ready for market in just a few weeks, being fed? A friend once bought a live duck for their mother, an eight-pound fatty that just lay on the ground, unable to move, only to find out it had already suffered a fracture.

Not to mention the unseen breeding process, my own marination was a prime example. I would tell customers how cleanly we washed the poultry, but often, due to busyness, they weren't washed at all before marination. The marinade, being expensive, was never discarded, and over time, I had no idea what was in it. As long as it didn't smell bad, it was reused, and as long as the fried product was golden, it sold happily.

Oil

Initially, I used salad oil for frying and changed it regularly. Later, I was told that was foolish; just keep a barrel (40 pounds) on display. The oil in the machine not only didn't decrease but increased because the animals were so oily and unnaturally fattened. So, the oil was rarely changed, and customers were often lied to about the frequency of oil changes. Only when the residue was too much would the oil be partially replaced.

Friends, don't think the replaced oil was useless. I once thought the same, wondering what to do with so much oil. Soon after opening, people came to buy it cheaply. What I thought was waste turned out to be profitable and in high demand.

Behind the Frying

When people enjoy the fragrant fried skewers, they never wonder where the oil comes from. Small vendors usually buy this cheap oil, used for who knows how long, from places slightly farther away, as no one checks.

Thinking back to when I often ate those fried skewers and took my child to eat various meat skewers; even some bun and rice noodle shop owners bought this oil. It's said that buns made with this oil, without additional seasonings, sold exceptionally well. Remembering how I used to buy those fragrant buns to save time now makes me nauseous, feeling truly sorry for my child. If I weren't in this business, how would I know these things?

The situation with fried Western-style chicken legs is similar. After seeing their production process (through similar methods), I regretted buying three or five at a time for my niece and daughter and never dared to buy them again.

In fact, the abuse of additives in the food industry has been exposed multiple times, but some business owners, for their own profit, disregard customer health. These finer details were revealed as I became more familiar with the additive suppliers, who initially feared I was a journalist due to past exposés but eventually explained the functions of various additives to me.

I wondered why, upon entering an additive shop, I could smell familiar scents. Upon inquiry, I learned they were from various cream pastries, sausages, and instant noodle seasonings—main ingredients in the snacks our children often eat, which are very likely to cause obesity with long-term consumption.I finally understand why so many children around me are becoming overweight.

In the past, my child's grandmothers always said that food made at home is cleaner than what's bought outside. I used to think that was just an excuse they made because they didn't want to spend money on the child. After all, there's only one child, and childhood happens only once. Since we could afford it, why not let the child eat what they want?

Then, I watched a documentary about healthy eating in the new century, and it completely opened my eyes. I realized how ignorant I had been and felt deeply regretful, even to the point of wanting to cry. Most importantly, I felt terribly sorry for my child.

A healthy child not only benefits themselves but also brings joy to the whole family. For many families, the child is everything to the adults...

What can we actually eat?

In this day and age, what should we and our children eat? It's really hard to know what to do. A friend brought over some tomatoes, saying they were grown without pesticides. They didn't look very red, but she smiled mysteriously and said they were sweeter than the bright red ones sold outside. I tried one, and it was indeed true.

I thought sweet potatoes, being grown underground, might be safer. I specifically asked a farmer I knew, only to find out that a lot of chemical fertilizers and pesticides are still used to increase yields.

My child used to love dumplings with leek filling. Later, I met a parent from her class who said their family sold leeks, but they also used chemical solutions to grow them, so it's better to eat less.

Another parent told me she feeds her pigs all sorts of things and advised me not to let my child eat too much meat. When I asked for details, she wouldn't say more, only that she was looking out for us.

In the past, to save time, I often bought buns and dumplings from the largest supermarket in the city, thinking they were more trustworthy. This parent used to supply meat to that supermarket and also collected pork skins. While collecting the skins, she showed me the meat processing area inside. It was greasy and filthy, with piles of black residue scraped from the meat fat left uncleaned, all of which was ground into the meat filling.

She also told me about the various uses for pork skins: making aspic, selling to smaller shops, industrial uses, etc. Even if the skins went bad, they would just fry them and add a lot of seasoning and additives, making it impossible to tell. If the smell still couldn't be masked, they wouldn't throw them away—money is money, after all, and they would find a way to sell them... And she herself ran a small restaurant.

A type of tropical fish from Africa is very popular in China's food scene, but it's hard to raise in the north because it only thrives in water temperatures of 9–13 degrees Celsius. To make money, they stimulate the fish to grow quickly. My uncle raised these fish and made a good profit. Looking at the plump fish, he always said to eat less, as too much isn't good...

Now, some farmers grow two types of rice: the smaller, less shiny, lower-yield rice is for their own consumption, while the larger, shinier, higher-yield rice is sold to others...

Now, I've become so paranoid that I don't dare give my child anything to eat, as I don't trust anything. When I ask my friends, they all share the same concerns.

Looking inward, what are we doing? Are we being fair to ourselves and our children? What's wrong with us? We've been deceived by the color, aroma, and taste of food. When we shop, what do we look for? Color, size, taste, etc., all based on a herd mentality. But when we're all being deceived, how often is the crowd's judgment correct? Yet we eat every day—where do we go from here?

The reality tells us that choosing traditional organic produce is the most reliable option.

Support traditional farming and buy green, organic produce.Around us, a considerable number of benevolent individuals have already begun practicing healthy agriculture that avoids pesticides and chemical fertilizers, embracing a completely natural and organic cycle. Those round, yellow-based red tomatoes look so robust and healthy! The cucumbers, still with flowers and thorns in their mid-growth stage, taste refreshingly sweet and fragrant. The deep purple eggplants, simply stir-fried, release a natural aroma. And then there are the perhaps not perfectly uniform ears of corn, where even the cob can be chewed after eating the kernels. Potatoes, green beans, red amaranth, purslane, sweet potatoes, bitter melons... all smile at us, as if saying to each one of us: "Plant us well, and we will grow everything that is completely beneficial to your bodies. From top to bottom, roots, stems, flowers, fruits, leaves; colors, red, yellow, green, black, white. As long as you grow us in accordance with the laws of nature, what grows will be beneficial to your health. As the saying goes, 'Good begets good.'"

At home, we can utilize limited conditions to sprout various kinds of sprouts; eat brown rice and whole wheat flour. Come home to eat, cook for yourself, it's warm and safe.

In fact, the true guarantee of quality lies in our thousands of years of traditional agriculture. Our health is the foundational guarantee of future happiness.

I urge everyone to return to tradition, which is to return to nature.

Do not continue to consume bitterness and poison, save your own health, save our next generation! Take care! Take care!

Source: http://www. dfg. hk/ big5/ ssht/ ss/ 18- zha. htm