The Chaebol Returns To The Presidency 1967 [EN]: Chapter 155

155. Robot’s Meal

Food Sanitation Inspection Center.

The Food Sanitation Inspection Center of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety was greatly expanded and actively operating, largely due to the GMO grain issue. Public interest reports and reports of substandard food were incentivized with reward money.

A researcher presented analysis results to the research director.

“The students exhibited food poisoning symptoms because industrial-grade toxic pigments were used in the pickled radishes. The school trip restaurant, while preparing a large quantity of food, mixed these industrial pigments with regular radishes to imitate pickled radish.”

Next, they reported the analysis results of the reported tofu.

“A significant amount of industrial lime, which is unfit for consumption, was discovered in the tofu.”

“Lime? You mean they’re feeding people lime?”

“That’s outrageous.”

“Why would they put that in tofu?”

“It was used as a coagulant to solidify soft tofu.”

“The tofu the entire nation eats is lime tofu! Surely not all tofu is like that, right?”

“That’s something the police will need to investigate.”

*

Cabinet meeting.

The Minister of the Interior reported the test results of the industrial pigment pickled radishes, lime tofu, and gunpowder-treated pork to the President.

The President was aghast.

“Industrial pigments and lime tofu! Even meat soaked in chemicals!”

The sawdust chili powder, carbide rice wine, and mercury bean sprout incidents from the Chairman Wang era [a period known for food safety scandals] vaguely resurfaced in his memory.

This suggested it wasn’t just a series of isolated incidents.

The Minister of the Interior stated, “We are currently detaining and investigating the president of the tofu factory in question. The dilemma is whether or not to make this incident public.”

The President inquired, “Why is public disclosure a problem?”

“Tofu is a staple side dish. We haven’t fully investigated all tofu production, so announcing ‘lime tofu’ might cause the public to avoid tofu altogether. Reputable tofu factories could suffer, leading to widespread distrust of food and public unease.”

The President responded, “It’s unfortunate, but we can’t simply cover it up. Public disclosure alone will create confusion, but we can use this as an opportunity to eradicate substandard food.”

“…….”

“Okay, here’s the plan. First, disclose the facts as they are. Then, as the Minister said, there will be significant confusion due to distrust of food.”

The President detailed the roadmap.

The ministers nodded.

*

The Commissioner of the National Police Agency briefed the public on the pickled radish and lime tofu incident.

It was prominently featured in newspapers and led the 9 o’clock TV news.

As expected, the news spread rapidly.

The people, who consumed tofu regularly, were furious.

“What? You’re saying I’ve been eating lime tofu all this time?”

“No wonder I’ve been feeling sick and drained!”

“The kimbap [Korean seaweed rice rolls] tasted strange on the picnic. Yellow liquid seeped from the pickled radish, and I got a stomachache. It wasn’t the rice that was spoiled!”

“Those bastards! They deserve to be shot!”

“Execution is too good for them. They should be locked up and forced to eat only lime tofu and colored pickled radish three times a day!”

Broadcasting stations and newspaper reporters belatedly swarmed the tofu factory, photographing and filming empty bags of industrial lime found in the warehouse, engaging in sensationalized special reports to incite public outrage.

*

At dawn, tofu peddlers with A-frames [traditional Korean carrying frames] went door-to-door, ringing their bells.

“Tofu, tofu! We also have warm, soft tofu!”

While the rooster announces the dawn in the countryside, the tofu peddler heralds the start of the day in the city.

Housewives who hadn’t shopped the previous day called out, and soon the tofu trays were empty after the peddler made his rounds.

However, after the lime tofu incident, the attitude towards tofu peddlers drastically changed.

“Have you been selling lime tofu all along?”

“You’re making too much noise at dawn. Go to another neighborhood!”

The tofu peddler tried to explain.

“This isn’t lime tofu. My wife and I made this warm tofu with bittern [a byproduct of sea salt production used as a coagulant] all night.”

“How can we believe you! I won’t buy it!”

The tofu A-frame, which should have felt light, remained heavy as the peddler hadn’t sold a single piece. He trudged away with heavy steps.

Tofu, which had been selling briskly in markets and stores, now sat unsold.

Since refrigeration was limited at the time, unsold tofu had to be discarded daily. Tofu factories, facing order cancellations, began to go bankrupt.

With public opinion inflamed, the President chose to intensify crackdowns rather than suppress the news.

“Investigate all commonly consumed foods sold in the market, such as bean sprouts, chili powder, honey, and rice wine!”

The Food Sanitation Research Institute operated around the clock.

*

Cabinet meeting.

The Minister of Health and Welfare reported the shocking results of the investigation into common foods.

“There are approximately 6,000 to 7,000 bean sprout manufacturers nationwide, with 800 in Seoul alone. However, over 50% of the bean sprouts sold in the market used oil stoves and pesticides, including organic mercury agents harmful to humans, as growth promoters and preservatives.”

“More than half!”

The President and other attendees were shocked by the figures.

“This harmful cultivation method has been widely adopted by bean sprout factories because it increases production by more than five times.”

“Legitimate companies will inevitably go bankrupt.”

“Exactly. They do it because of competition, even knowing it’s harmful.”

“Then why don’t they report the harmful cultivation sites instead of following suit?”

“…….”

“The executive branch bears significant responsibility for failing to crack down and provide guidance. The system incentivizes following the harmful practices rather than reporting them.”

“I deeply regret it, Your Majesty! There are many more shocking cases of substandard food. Please prepare yourselves to hear them.”

“Sigh~ Let’s hear it!”

“There’s also soy sauce made from seasoning scraps. It’s only black in color, and the taste is artificially created with seasonings.”

“Ha~ really.”

“Chili powder made by mixing sawdust colored with harmful pigments has also been found. There are even completely fake foods.”

“Completely fake?”

“Fake honey, imitating the smell and color by adding sugar, water, alum, coloring, and flavoring, is circulating in the market.”

“Are these all small business owners?”

“The same applies to large food companies.”

“Large companies too?”

“They mixed harmful pigments into flour dough and sold it as tomato ketchup. There are only three tomato ketchup manufacturers, and all three sold fake products.”

“How is such a thing possible in a large company?”

“Our people are still largely unfamiliar with the taste of genuine tomato ketchup imported from the United States, making them easily deceived.”

“Ha~ it’s truly astonishing!”

“Fake alcohol is also rampant. There’s beer diluted with water, and rice wine artificially ripened with carbide is widespread.”

The President was stunned.

“This isn’t fit for human consumption; it’s like feeding people robot food!”

“When we investigated the distribution channels, most military supplies came from substandard food suppliers. I suspect the problem originates there.”

“Are soldiers not human?”

“They exploited the fact that the military doesn’t report stomachaches or food poisoning incidents to the outside.”

“I don’t understand. If you have a problem after eating food, you should report it and take action. Why are they keeping quiet?”

“If there’s a food poisoning or stomachache incident, the person in charge and the commander will be held accountable, so they keep it secret. The businesses took advantage of this. Besides, I’ve heard there’s corruption in the military’s food budget. They take bribes and select businesses, keeping it even more secret to avoid being caught buying cheaper goods than what’s on the receipt.”

“They take other people’s precious children, make them fulfill their duty of national defense, and then feed them substandard food!”

“The ‘jjambap’ [military food] isn’t just ‘jjambap’ for nothing.”

“What’s the point of modernizing barracks by changing beds if the food they eat is harming their health? I’m going to eliminate the stigma of ‘jjambap’ this time!”

The Prime Minister said, “Your Majesty, if we announce this as it is, the country will be in turmoil. It’s so widespread that I don’t know where to begin.”

The President responded, “We need to reorganize the laws first. Let’s change all food manufacturers, except for handmade small-quantity production and sales, to a licensing system, require ingredient labeling, and strengthen food standards. Currently, if it’s not for industrial use, it’s not considered substandard food, and even if fake food is caught, the punishment is lenient. They pay a small fine and are released.”

“That’s right, Your Majesty.”

“Let’s also establish food manufacturing hygiene standards. Food made in places infested with rats and cockroaches cannot be safe. Even if it’s not substandard food, if it doesn’t meet the hygiene facility standards, we’ll suspend business, and if caught twice, we’ll revoke the license. Only companies with food hygiene standard facilities will be licensed.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

“Let’s significantly increase the penalties, treating these as serious crimes, not minor offenses. If you violate the revised Food Sanitation Act, we’ll strengthen it to include not only license revocation but also a minimum of 5 years in prison and punitive damages of 10 times the amount sold. We’ll also greatly increase the reward money for reporting violations.”

The Prime Minister said, “But I don’t know if the National Assembly will fully approve it, Your Majesty. They might resist, arguing that it’s too harsh on food producers and will harm economic activity.”

“That’s why we’re informing the public about all these incidents, even if it causes confusion. The people need to know so they won’t buy these products, and some lawmakers won’t be swayed by lobbying from food businesses.”

“Ah, that’s what you meant! I understand, Your Majesty!”

The Minister of Economy and Finance said, “If we switch to a licensing system for companies meeting hygiene facility standards, it will be costly, and eventually, the price of groceries will increase for the public, causing their shopping basket prices to skyrocket.”

“That’s right. So, let’s subsidize 80% of the hygiene facility costs at low-interest rates. If a newly licensed company raises prices by more than 10% compared to existing ones, we’ll conduct a tax investigation. It’s clearly a case of exploiting the facilities to take excessive profits, even after receiving support.”

“That’s a wise decision. The collapsed food market will be quickly reorganized, and the scale will increase, making it profitable in the long run, so the situation will stabilize quickly.”

*

The Commissioner of the National Police Agency briefed on the results of the crackdown on colored sawdust chili powder, fake liquor, carbide rice wine, fake honey, fake tomato ketchup, and seasoning scrap soy sauce.

As soon as the news broke, there was an uproar.

Led by women’s groups, people protested and flocked to district and city halls.

“Has everything we’ve eaten so far been garbage?”

“What are we supposed to eat?”

“Compensate us for all the medical expenses we’ve incurred!”

They threw tofu, bean sprouts, empty liquor bottles, shopping baskets, and dented pots and spoons, even grabbing the district head and mayor by the collar.

As housewives, previously unfamiliar with demonstrations, rose up in protest, the country teetered.

The Prime Minister issued an emergency statement.

“The establishment of the Food Sanitation Research Institute to conduct large-scale food crackdowns and publicize the findings is intended to uncover and expose the actual conditions that consumers have unknowingly been subjected to, and to prevent future occurrences. The government will enact food hygiene standards and revise the food law, changing it from a registration system to a licensing system only for food companies that have installed standard hygiene facilities. Furthermore, we will significantly increase the penalties for violators and implement a punitive compensation system of 10 times the accumulated sales.”

The enactment of supporting laws was passed on to the National Assembly.

As expected, an opposing lawmaker questioned the Prime Minister, who attended the Legislation and Judiciary Committee.

“It’s good to strengthen food hygiene standards, but it’s excessive to enact hygiene facility requirements that even the United States doesn’t have. Are you suggesting that tofu and bean sprouts should be made in factories like cars? Food should have a handmade taste; is it a factory assembly line?”

The Prime Minister replied, “Assemblyman, is it wrong to be ahead of the United States in food hygiene?”

“Huh? Are you trying to argue with me? What kind of answer is that?”

“Assemblyman, why are you asking such a pro-American question? Is Korea not allowed to be ahead of the United States?”