Yellow Swan announces no detection of alpha-carotene; Wang Hai states that not disclosing the results of the random inspection method "is unconvincing"

Author | Zheng Haoyuan Intern | Wang Chaoyang

Editor-in-Chief | Chen Junhong

On March 25th, Huang Tiane announced publicly that the results of sampling inspections by regulatory authorities in three regions and self-inspections by the company all showed “no detection of astaxanthin.” This result contradicts two previous test reports released by professional fraud fighter Wang Hai.

In response to Huang Tiane’s latest progress statement, Wang Hai told NetEase Finance that this sampling inspection “lacks any credibility,” mainly due to the sampling method. If the inspection was specifically arranged by regulators and the company prepared in advance, it could be an “AB product sampling.” “Many of the products we previously exposed as fake were also found non-compliant during regulatory sampling inspections,” Wang Hai said.

According to earlier media reports, on March 13th, Wang Hai’s team released a video claiming that a batch of Huang Tiane “edible eggs” purchased at Xuchang Pangdonglai Supermarket tested positive for synthetic pigment astaxanthin (also known as canthaxanthin), with a content of 0.399 mg/kg. Based on this, Wang Hai questioned the long-standing claims by Huang Tiane of “natural plant-based feed” and “no artificial pigments,” suggesting they may be false advertising.

On March 15th, Huang Tiane’s parent company Fengji Food Group issued a statement clarifying that Huang Tiane eggs do not contain artificial synthetic pigments. The detected 0.399 mg/kg is considered “natural background level” and not artificially added. The statement also pointed out that astaxanthin naturally exists in algae, fungi, crustaceans, and other organisms, and current feed production equipment does not have the capacity to add astaxanthin.

The next day, Wang Hai released a second batch of test results. The report showed that another batch of Huang Tiane eggs purchased at Yonghui Supermarket contained astaxanthin at a level of 1.65 mg/kg, more than four times the previous data. Wang Hai stated, “Any mass-produced eggs testing positive for astaxanthin are 100% due to feed additives, not natural sources.”

This discrepancy in values became a key point of subsequent controversy. Wang Hai explained to NetEase Finance that the fourfold difference in test results proves that Huang Tiane eggs are “not of natural background,” as natural astaxanthin levels should be stable and relatively constant. The fluctuating values suggest possible human addition. Regarding Huang Tiane and experts’ claim that “0.399 mg/kg is within the natural background level,” Wang Hai denied this, believing that although the number is not high, it is enough to prove that Huang Tiane eggs are not “natural eggs” but “beauty eggs.”

On the evening of March 16th, Huang Tiane founder Feng Bin appeared live to respond. He stated that the feed ingredients used by Huang Tiane are natural plant extracts such as marigold and chili peppers, costing over ten million yuan annually. According to EU standards, a person would need to eat 75 Huang Tiane eggs daily to reach the harmful level of astaxanthin. Feng Bin also announced that farm traceability would be open, with all costs borne by Huang Tiane.

Associate Professor Zhu Yi from China Agricultural University and several other experts pointed out that routine testing cannot distinguish between natural and artificial astaxanthin because their chemical structures are identical. The detected amount of 0.399 mg/kg corresponds to only 0.67-0.74 mg/kg of feed additive, far below the effective coloring dose of 4 mg/kg, which is within the natural background range. Experts believe that dosage is the key to source determination, not whether the values fluctuate.

At the same time, experts also noted that China currently has no mandatory standards for residual astaxanthin in fresh eggs, nor testing method standards. Regulations on feed additives pertain to poultry feed, not finished eggs.

Pangdonglai also responded to the incident, stating that the testing standards cited by Wang Hai apply to “poultry feed” and not to egg products, and that the standards are misapplied and lack legal basis.

Wang Hai further targeted Huang Tiane’s long-standing marketing claims supporting high premiums. He pointed out that the “38-year edible egg standard in Japan” does not exist. In Japan, all eggs are edible, and being suitable for raw consumption is a prerequisite for entry into the Japanese market, not a unique advantage of Huang Tiane. The claim of “market leader in high-quality sales” is also unfounded, as there is no official standard for “high-quality eggs” in China. He believes Huang Tiane’s high premiums are built on these marketing concepts, constituting malicious competition and demeaning other egg brands.