After Cabbage, Now Green Onions: "Take Them for Free"... Farmers Suffer Absurd Losses as Fields Are Stripped

Fake Videos Cause Grief for Chinese Farmers

"Legal Compliance Required Even Online"

A bizarre incident occurred in China where a false video claiming that "green onions are free" spread through social networking services (SNS), causing farmers to suffer damages amounting to several million won.

Farmers Suffer Damages Due to Fake SNS Video

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According to local media outlets such as Guangming Daily on April 22, a woman surnamed Xu (35) from a village in Haimen District, Tongnan City, Jiangsu Province, produced and posted a false video on SNS on April 8. The video claimed that people could "take green onions for free."

This video was further spread by about 20 other users, including a man surnamed Dong (39), a woman surnamed Wang (40), and a man surnamed Chen (61). After seeing the video, people flocked to the green onion field and began pulling up the crops. The police estimated the farmers' losses at 10,000 to 20,000 yuan (approximately 2.16 million to 4.33 million won).

In response, the cyber investigation authorities quickly launched an investigation into the spread of fake news. The local police detained Xu, the original distributor, and imposed administrative penalties or issued warnings to the other participants.

The police warned, "The internet is not a place beyond the reach of the law, and anyone posting information online must comply with regulations." The police made it clear that they will hold individuals strictly legally responsible for creating or spreading false information.

Last Year, Cabbage Incident... Damages Reached 200 Million Won

Video of 'Free Cabbage Distribution' posted on SNS. Weibo

This is not the first time that farmers in China have suffered damages due to fake videos. Last year, a video titled "Free Cabbage" went viral, prompting hundreds of people to rush to a farm. The video claimed that "hundreds of square meters of cabbage fields had become useless" and stated, "If you come to Chifeng City, Inner Mongolia, you can take cabbage."

After watching the video, people arrived carrying sacks or driving cars or bicycles, and began harvesting the cabbage. The losses were reported to have reached about 1 million yuan (approximately 216.5 million won). At the time, the affected farm owner, surnamed Li, said, "At first, only three or four people came, so I told them to take a few cabbages. But soon more and more people came, and eventually 700 to 800 people showed up. No matter how much I tried to stop them, it was impossible to control."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.