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China, trying to convince the world its food is safe, has now been hit by fruit-fly rumours which have cost farmers millions of dollars in lost sales.
Tangerines, usually wildly popular at this time of year, are selling for less than 1 yuan (27c) a kilogram in Beijing, and shoppers are still reluctant to buy while 1.6 million tonnes of unwanted fruit sit waiting for delivery trucks in the central province of Hubei.
The panic was caused by rumours in the southwestern province of Sichuan last week that 10,000 tonnes of tangerines had to be destroyed because of fruit flies. Sichuan denied the reports, saying only 12 tonnes were destroyed and that the situation was under control.
