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Three Delusions and a New Path: the Political Economy of the Chinese Food Traceability System

Unease about the numerous food safety incidents in China has unleashed public rage, outcry, and continuous discussion on new public alternatives and government measures. The Chinese government and Chinese technology giants stimulate the development of the food traceability system through unique identification codes attached to food packages that supposedly enable customers to know the whole life story of their food and to put their minds at ease. However, as a market-driven and technocratic approach, the food traceability system tends to carry three common delusions that government and corporate hype has embedded in their mechanisms. The first delusion is that the food traceability system is the optimum choice for solving China's food safety issues. It embodies a "certainty machine" (Zuboff, 2019) to supersede the necessity of trust and to construct the "illusions of perfect information" (Winseck, 2002) whereby the consumer is encouraged and incentivized to take on the role of screening and investigating their food to combat complex social and public health issues in China. Another delusion is that a highly integrated food traceability system can increase efficiency and convenience in Chinese society through a relentless automation system and AI-powered data analytics engine. The final delusion is that stiffened food traceability laws and regulations can cause technology giants to withdraw their business involvement in the food industry due to increased responsibility and potential financial liabilities. After critically examining several primary and secondary sources to decipher the multi-faceted relations between the Chinese government, Chinese citizens, foreign capitals, and three Chinese Internet giants (Alibaba, Tencent, and JD), this paper expounds on these three troubling delusions.