Chinese Malls Offer Milk Tea, Ice Cream for Dead Mosquitoes

Shopping malls in eastern China are turning mosquito hunting into a summer marketing stunt, offering free milk tea and ice cream to customers who bring in captured mosquitoes.

In Dongying, Shandong Province, Wuyue Plaza recently launched a “catch mosquitoes for milk tea” contest, inviting shoppers to sign up on-site and collect special mosquito containers. Participants can take the boxes home, fill them with mosquitoes and return on July 25 or 26 to have their catches counted.

Anyone who brings back at least 10 mosquitoes, dead or alive, can receive a free milk tea coupon and a certificate naming them a “mosquito expert,” according to mall staff. Each phone number can be used to enter only once, and the drink coupon can be redeemed for selected beverages at three partner brands in the mall. Supplies are limited and will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.

The unusual campaign quickly drew attention online, with many amused by the low-stakes challenge and the mock-serious tone of the award. Some social media users joked that they had finally found a way to make mosquitoes “pay rent,” while others posted photos of their carefully collected insects as if submitting scientific samples.

Similar mosquito-catching promotions have also appeared in several malls in Jiangsu Province, including in Suqian, Lianyungang and Yancheng. The rules are similarly relaxed: Mosquitoes do not have to be alive. In some promotions, three mosquitoes can be exchanged for an ice cream, while 10 can be traded for a cup of milk tea.

The campaigns come during China’s hot and humid summer, when mosquitoes are a routine nuisance in many cities. By turning pest control into a playful consumer activity, malls appear to be using the irritation of mosquito season to drive foot traffic and social media engagement.

Online reaction has been largely lighthearted. Many users have shared their “mosquito collections” and joked about building personal “mosquito atlases,” turning what is usually an annoying household chore into a competition for free drinks.