A Chinese snack shop that advertises “placenta processing” services and sells capsules made from afterbirth, purportedly to boost health, has sparked criticism and an official investigation.
The controversy came to light on April 6 when a netizen shared online that Auntie Congee’s Snack Shop, near the Changzhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Jiangsu province, southeastern China, was allegedly processing human placentas and selling them in capsule form.
Images circulated online clearly showing the shop’s signboard boldly stating “placenta processing.”
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The business charged 800 yuan (US$110) if the customer did not provide their own placenta and 300 yuan if they did, claiming that “all the placentas used were sourced from new mothers in hospital”.
The shop owner, who previously worked in post-partum recovery services, said that she can connect customers with maternity matrons.
In addition to the snack shop, the owner also runs an online shop called Zixuan Maternity Matron Centre.
The online shop offers post-partum services, including maternity care, childcare, meal preparation for new mothers, placenta processing, and post-partum recovery services.
Promotional materials show the process of grinding placentas with ingredients like ginseng powder and making the mixture into capsules.
The capsules are labelled ziheche, which is the traditional Chinese medicine term for placenta.
A poster highlights the purported benefits of placentas, noting that they are rich in protein and nutrients.
It also advertises two processing methods, patented freezing and traditional, allowing customers to watch the entire process in person.
On April 8, the Changzhou Municipal Health Commission told Jimu News that they have begun an investigation into the shop.
“The snack shop has been shut down for rectification. We are currently investigating the source of the placentas. Preliminary findings indicate that they did not come from any hospital,” said a staff member.
In traditional Chinese medicine, placentas have historically been believed to replenish energy, nourish blood, and are often recommended for people suffering from physical weakness, chronic coughing, or infertility.
However, due to safety and ethical concerns, the Chinese Pharmacopoeia removed placentas as an approved ingredient in 2015.
According to legal regulations in China, placentas belong to post-partum mothers, who have the sole right to decide on their disposal, and the sale of placentas by any individual or organisation is forbidden.
The controversy, reported by the Yangtze Evening News, has sparked a wave of criticism online.
One person said: “I really cannot believe that there are people who eat placenta as food. It is so disgusting.”
“It is already the year 2025! Who even believes in such nonsense? And treating women as some kind of ‘superfood’, is that not objectifying women?” said another.
While a third person said: “This is not surprising at all. In the past, hospitals would ask mothers whether they wanted to keep their placentas. If they did, it was usually consumed as food.”
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