#AtoZChallenge in China: Fake in China

In today’s #AtoZChallenge in China, we focus on a word that some people think about when they hear the phrase “Made in China.”

(UPDATED) Before I wrote this article, I asked some colleagues a question: “If I tell you this mouse is made in China, what do you think of it?” My Chinese colleague said, “It’s cheap… and fake?” Meanwhile, my Canadian officemate told us that items made in China nowadays are known for their technological prowess. “I must say ‘Yes, it’s fake’ like five or six years ago,” he added.
F is for Fake in China
I’m a little bit off in this part but no offense meant, I used to think that many Chinese items are fake. When I arrived here more than a year ago, I have tried to buy items that I think are fine, natural, and high-quality … but when I learned the wonders of Taobao and Jingdong online marketplace, that notion somehow changed.
Just days after a good friend taught me how to use Taobao and Jingdong, I found myself buying a lot of, you know, fake stuff, ranging from clothes to house appliance to kitchenware. Items sold on both app stores are incredibly cheap that you will lose your sanity (and money and time) just browsing and saving discounted products.
But remember, we’re talking about products… but how about edible ones made in China? Oh it’s so sickening. Just recently, there’s news about several factories in nearby Tianjin City manufacturing fake seasoning using industrial salt. The factories then label these fake products with legit brand names.
Even cultural icons couldn’t escape the Fakedom that is in China. Early this year, counterfeit Terracotta Warriors were smashed after a tourist scam was uncovered on social media.
And then there’s money in fake honey! In 2013, news about “honey laundering” broke loose and went viral on Chinese social media. The culprits allegedly sold fake honey for RMB 40-60 (USD 5.80-8.70) per kilo. The list goes on to fake eggs, tainted milk using melamine that, as of 2016, is still circulating around Chinese stores, unverified reports of plastic rice, and so on.
With all of these counterfeits and bogusness, one might think what the Chinese goverment is doing. Last year, a high-ranking government official said China would make the fight against counterfeiting and online piracy a priority. And then early this year, police in the eastern city of Taizhou seized bogus cosmetic products worth USD 120 million. Alibaba, the parent company of Taobao and TMall, began its crackdown on fake items after its suspension from the International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition. But still, this kind of black market is so rampant and lucrative.
Again, I asked my colleagues the same question. The Chinese one said items made in China are cheap but low quality; the Russian said it’s hard to distinguish what’s real and fake; the Filipino joked, “It’s normal! Even your mother is made in China.”
And yeah, our family has this Chinese bloodline so thin it makes me a fake Chinese guy.
Thanks for reading my #AtoZChallenge in China! Tomorrow we’ll go to another great thing that cyber-shields the country.
Featured photo shows a pair of shoes that have an “Adides” print on it. Taken last week in Shandong Province.
Note: I updated one paragraph and added links to some news about government action against counterfeiting.