‘The lunch of suffering’: Chinese social media users in hysterics over Western ‘white food’

“White people food” is trending on Chinese social media platforms as users are baffled by the typical western packed lunches, with some even calling it the “lunch of suffering”.

The trend started on social media platforms Weibo and Xiaohongshu, where users were amazed by quick and easy meals like cold sandwiches and raw vegetables.

Many posts are from international students who are surprised by the simple meals their colleagues eat, just as Chinese workers are shocked by their ex-pat colleagues’ repeated lunches.

Photos of the bland lunches have quickly spread across global social media platforms, including TikTok and Twitter.

The trend is said to have started with a video of a woman on a train in Switzerland eating a bag of lettuce with ham and mustard

Many social media users have promoted the health benefits of the simple “white man’s lunch.” in response, a commentator on Xiaohongshu suggested, “If such a meal is for prolonging life, then what is the meaning of life?”

Perhaps the most drastic reaction was found on Weibo, where one user shared a photo of a Lunchables-esque tray of crackers, cheese, and meat and captioned, “The point of the whites’ meal is to learn what it feels like to dead, but I took two bites and it was so bad that I realized how alive I am.’

“White people’s food” has made it beyond China’s social media platforms and has become trending on Twitter.

Commenting on the trend, one Twitter user commented, “Wait for them to unlock food for British whites, this looks like California whites.” Very different level of suffering.’

The trend accelerated because a video of a woman in Switzerland in a train eating a bag of lettuce with ham and a pack of mustard went viral.

Hundreds of users shared their own experiences with low maintenance lunches in the US, Australia and across Europe.

“When I first came to Australia, I saw a woman who bought raw sliced ​​mushrooms from the supermarket and sat down to eat it.”

Marcelo Wang explained in a TikTok video that the fascination with these meals spread because many Chinese are used to cooking with many different ingredients.

User @marcelowang0527 took to TikTok to explain the viral food trend. He said the fascination with bland meals has spread because Chinese households are used to cooking with lots of spices

The TikToker posted several examples of food for white people, including a carrot wrapped in a slice of cheese. The caption read, “Meeting a deadline in college forced me to revamp the meal for white people.”

He translated some photos posted on Chinese apps, such as a cheese-wrapped carrot with the caption, “Meeting a deadline in college made me innovate the meal for white people.”

Some people commented, “Even my rabbit would kick this food.”

He explained that some people even became “addicted” to white foods like lunchables and admitted that he liked the quick snack itself.

Some Western users admitted that the Chinese take on their lunch was correct, one saying, “The bread, cucumbers, and lunch meat are pretty accurate.”

Another said, “As a white man, I didn’t know we were all packing lunches like that, omgggg, I thought I was just being lazy.”

While others defended their meals: “I’m just going to let them believe that we eat healthy.”

Another commented, “It’s literally because we don’t have lunch breaks lol.”

Others warned against international TikTokers making ‘white people’s lunches’: ‘Don’t volunteer it to yourself! We do it because we don’t know any better. Don’t do this to yourself.’