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What’s in the Bun?
- A viral game built to bust food rumours

520baozi.com — What’s in the Bun? — is a game focused on helping users become more savvy when it comes to food safety by helping them learn about important food safety incidents and dispelling false food rumours.

Cause

Food safety

Locations

China

Status

Online

Content

A 2015 Pew research survey shows 71 per cent of Chinese citizens cite food safety as a “big problem.” The Chinese government has declared food safety as a top priority for the country. Telling food safety truth from food safety fiction can be difficult given how quickly rumours spread on and offline.

What’s in the Bun? was created to increase public knowledge about food safety in China by combining the best practices of game design with valuable research on food safety. With this data, the project has sought to give users a chance to test how savvy they are when it comes to food safety (and have some fun while learning).

The food incident data in What’s in the Bun? was first sourced from the website Throw It Out The Window and then cross-referenced with a wide variety of Chinese and international media, as well as environmental and medical organizations.

The core game mechanic was developed around intuitive swiping gestures in order to give players a game that felt fun, familiar, and engaging.

What's in the Bun launched in 2016 and was an instant hit on social media.

4.8MVists
16KAMA Submissions

The result was a vibrant online conversation about focused on debunking food rumours and how people can be more resilient when it comes to misinformation.

Possible Use Cases

  • Combating disinformation
  • Issue area education