Recently, following the trend of “pre-made meals,” a controversy has erupted in China over the emergence of a new trend known as “human feed.” Some netizens have described it as something that could only appear in times of great depression or even an apocalyptic scenario.
On social media in China, discussions about “human feed” have suddenly surged, with many bloggers criticizing and questioning it vehemently.
On June 16, a reporter from Epoch Times opened platforms like Xiaohongshu (Red) and Douyin, where there was a flood of discussions on this topic.
A public account named “Maple Cold Musi” on June 12 simultaneously posted on Weibo and Zhihu, introducing something called “human feed” as a way to have a meal in 3 minutes for 30 yuan that would provide all the necessary nutrients for a day.
According to the article, the so-called “human feed” is not dog food or pig feed but a food product called “Ruo Fan,” which contains a mix of nutrients such as protein, fat, vitamins, and dietary fiber in proportions necessary for the human body. This product, packaged in a can, is marketed as a convenient and nutritionally balanced fast food option.
“You don’t need to heat it up or use any cooking methods. Just gently open the lid, add warm water, wait for 3 minutes, and you can have up to 6 hours of sustainable energy. This reminds me of the popular slogan nationwide – ‘charge for 5 minutes, talk for 2 hours.’ Only this time, the object being charged is our body,” the post explained.
It is claimed that in 2015, a programmer named Shao Wei found two major problems in his life: short rest time and consuming a lot of time for lunch due to waiting for elevators and queuing for meals, leading to no time to rest. Long-term high-intensity work, staying up late, and consuming unhealthy food caused him to develop high blood fat and fatty liver, with the health red light already on.
He then discovered that an adult male only needs 60 grams of protein, 60 grams of fat, 100 milligrams of vitamin C, and 25 grams of dietary fiber a day. By mixing these elements together, he devised “Ruo Fan,” a human feed that supposedly meets all daily nutritional needs.
A comment from a post-2000s netizen cited in the article states: “Ruo Fan pairs perfectly with overtime work. In the first job, too busy to eat, but fortunately there’s Ruo Fan.”
Netizens on Zhihu expressed sadness over this phenomenon:
“One can only say that this is truly tragic! Living in a way where even eating can be like this, thinking about the people’s longing for a better life, there’s nothing to say!”
“When pre-made meals first came out, my first impression was it reminded me of animal feed.”
“I’m ignorant, this is the first time I’ve heard of it! Is this preparation for the end of days…”
“The first reaction is animal feed; the second reaction is gratitude that the company has its own canteen with fresh meals every day, and more importantly, eating does not affect nap time. Continuing to elaborate, I might fall in love with this job.”
“More impressive than ‘Modern Times,’ with an automatic feeder, saving a minute.”
“Still troublesome, in the past, in science fiction movies, there were food capsules. Please try harder to research and develop them.”
On June 14, a blogger from Hebei, Lao Ma, criticized human feed in a video, questioning if people should have time to eat. Is this a kind of humiliation?
“I don’t know if society is progressing or regressing. Today, I saw a product called meal replacement powder, human feed. I’m not criticizing the product itself or the manufacturer. This product is nutritious, with dietary fiber and vitamins. We all know that such products exist because there is a demand, but is the appearance of this product a form of humiliation? It has sold tens of thousands. Are we not humans anymore if we can’t even spare time to cook or order takeout?”
The blogger further questioned, “Will tomorrow just be intravenous drips? People should eat, is this a joke? Are bosses even depriving workers of the time to eat? People need to eat, people need sunshine.”
Some netizens commented, “I really need ‘human feed.’ I remember that year when I went to Shenzhen alone, I was so broke.”
Some netizens joked, “This is for my enteritis, can’t eat, so I have to drink this.”
Others mentioned that this could be something that only appears in times of great depression or even an apocalyptic scenario.