CNBC AI News, August 21st – A social media kerfuffle is brewing in Guangdong, China, after a user posted a video alleging disparaging treatment by a delivery driver. According to the user, the driver, delivering an order from Meituan’s “Pin Haofan” (拼好饭) service, reportedly referred to the meal as “dog food” (“狗饭”) upon delivery.
The customer, understandably offended, contacted the driver querying the remark. The driver allegedly responded that the term was commonplace within their platform. “We’re used to calling it that; we all call it dog food,” the driver is reported to have said.
Adding fuel to the fire, the driver allegedly told the customer, “If you’re sick, don’t eat it. Just request a refund.”
However, according to Sina Technology, Meituan customer service has responded to the allegations, stating that they could not find any matching order details and that “after verification, it was not a Pin Haofan order, nor was it a Meituan delivery driver.” This raises questions about the validity of the initial complaint and the actual platform involved.
This incident comes as analysts are closely watching Meituan’s Pin Haofan, a service dedicated to value-priced meals. Meituan data indicates a significant presence in the market. Over 5,000 restaurant brands have partnered with the service.
As of July 2025, over a million merchants were reportedly operating on the platform, with daily order volumes peaking at over 35 million.
Adding a layer of transparency, Meituan announced in late July the “Million Open Kitchens” initiative for Pin Haofan. This initiative aims to partner with 200,000 merchants to showcase their kitchen environments through real-time images, text, and even live video streams.
The company plans to incentivize potentially 1 million merchants to upgrade their kitchens to achieve greater transparency.
Meituan has stated that merchants who actively open their kitchens through live streaming and other methods will receive dedicated support and subsidies from Pin Haofan. This investment in transparency could be a strategic move to regain consumer trust in the wake of such controversies.
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