China’s New June Rules: Kindergarten Food Safety and Train Fare Crackdown
A pair of significant regulations taking effect across China on June 1 will tighten food safety standards for millions of preschool children and introduce new consequences for railway fare evaders. The measures, announced by the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) and China State Railway Group, reflect Beijing’s ongoing push to strengthen public safety and transportation compliance through targeted regulatory action.
Kindergarten Food Safety: A New Regulatory Framework
The newly issued Regulation on the Supervision and Management of Kindergarten Food Safety Main Responsibility, jointly drafted by the SAMR and the Ministry of Education, applies to more than 250,000 kindergartens serving approximately 35.8 million children across China, as reported by Xinhua News.
According to Sun Huichuan, Food Safety Director of the SAMR, the regulation sends a clear signal: “Children’s matters are matters of utmost importance. In front of children’s dietary safety, there is no ‘almost good enough,’ only ‘must be good.’”
Key Provisions for Kindergartens
Under the 32-article regulation, kindergartens are prohibited from purchasing pre-packaged pastries, hamburgers, sandwiches, and similar foods from external suppliers. The rules also ban the purchase, storage, or use of bulk edible oil and bulk salt. Kindergartens are generally required to operate and manage their own canteens, with outsourcing permitted only under strict selection criteria.
Food safety training requirements have been significantly strengthened: food safety directors, officers, and staff must complete at least 40 hours of training per year, with at least one ethics and professional competency session per semester. Market regulators will conduct supervision inspections at least twice per semester.
Additional measures include a mandatory “accompanying meal” system, requiring kindergarten leaders to eat with children and maintain records, as detailed by China News Network. The regulation also encourages “Internet + Transparent Kitchen” smart management systems for real-time video monitoring of food preparation.
The regulation was catalyzed in part by the 2025 Gansu Tianshui child blood lead abnormality incident, which exposed weaknesses in food safety awareness, risk prevention capabilities, and staff quality at some kindergartens.
Railway Fare Evasion: New Enforcement Mechanisms
Separately, the new version of the Railway Passenger Transport Regulations, issued by China State Railway Group, introduces ticket purchase restrictions for passengers who refuse to pay penalties after fare evasion, as reported by CCTV News via 21jingji.
Mou Hongji, Deputy Director of Passenger Transport Management at China Railway, explained that violations subject to restriction include traveling without a ticket, using altered or forged tickets, ticket-person-ID inconsistency, using lower-class tickets for higher-class seats, and using discount tickets without proper credentials.
Passengers who refuse to pay after being informed will face ticket purchase restrictions, which can be lifted once they pay the owed fare plus a 50% surcharge. Electronic railway invoices can be issued within 180 days after the original trip ends.
Other Railway Service Improvements
The updated regulations also bring passenger-friendly changes. Student ticket discount zone management has been optimized, allowing online verification and eliminating the requirement for official stamps when changing discount zones. The connecting ticket time limit has been expanded by removing the previous 24-hour interval restriction, and a new courier service allows stations to mail lost items to passengers for a fee.
Broader Implications
These regulations represent part of China’s broader effort to strengthen governance through targeted regulatory reform. The kindergarten food safety rules address a critical gap in preschool care, while the railway measures close enforcement loopholes in one of the world’s largest high-speed rail networks. Both regulations take effect on June 1, 2026, and will be enforced through regular inspections and digital monitoring systems.
For parents, the new rules offer greater assurance about the safety of meals served to their children. For passengers, the message is clear: fare evasion now carries concrete consequences beyond simple fines.
What to Watch
Enforcement will be the key test. With over 250,000 kindergartens to monitor, questions remain about how regulators will verify compliance across such a vast system. Similarly, the railway industry’s ability to implement ticket purchase restrictions smoothly — and how these measures interact with China’s broader social credit framework — will be closely watched in the months ahead.