Couple Poisoned by Raticide-Tainted Cabbage Purchased Online

A couple in Taizhou, east China's Zhejiang province, fell critically ill with severe rat poison poisoning after consuming 4 kg of baby cabbage bought online for 17 yuan ($2.4), The Paper reported today.

The wife, surnamed Yang, was treated in the ICU for over a month before her condition improved. Her husband suffered systemic bleeding, pulmonary edema, and respiratory failure.

Yang said she purchased the cabbage via an e-commerce platform and cooked it the same evening it was delivered. She felt unwell soon after, and nosebleeds began the next day.

A medical certificate issued by Tiantai County People's Hospital on January 7 confirmed that both patients were initially diagnosed with coagulopathy caused by rodenticide poisoning, requiring continued hospitalization.

Yang shared chat records showing that the store's customer service denied any presence of rat poison in the vegetables.

Police later traced the source of contamination to old newspaper used to wrap the cabbage. The recycled paper had been exposed to rodenticide during storage, and the merchant — in an effort to cut costs — used it for packaging, allowing the toxin to seep into the vegetables.

The store involved has since been removed from the platform and its operator is currently uncontactable. The platform has provided the shop owner's details to police, who are now pursuing accountability across the supply chain.

As of January 25, the shop was found to have been deregistered on the platform.