Does a higher price guarantee quality?

A Malaysian reader shared this experience after buying rice from Pinduoduo (Temu owner):

I ordered Wuchang rice and millet. The price wasn’t cheap. After calculating everything, it wasn’t even more cost-effective than buying locally in Malaysia.
Before cooking, I already noticed many grains had black spots. I immediately asked the seller if it was moldy.

The reply was just one sentence: “Normal. Not spoiled.”

I still didn’t feel safe, so I cooked it. There was zero rice aroma. Instead, there was a clear stale, old smell.

Here’s the real problem:

If you don’t open or cook the food, how are you supposed to know there’s an issue?

But once you open it or cook it, the seller refuses a refund because “it’s already been opened.”

I applied for platform intervention. It still couldn’t resolve the problem effectively.

Don’t open it → you can’t check.
Open it → you can’t return it.
Cook it → you can’t return it.

So how exactly is a consumer supposed to prove anything?

I’m not saying every food product on Pinduoduo has problems. But this experience has made me much more cautious about buying food on the platform.

If the price isn’t particularly cheap, the quality can’t be verified, and after-sales support is this difficult… why would I still go out of my way to buy something that goes into my mouth from overseas?

Food is not an ordinary product. At the very least, consumers should be able to buy it with peace of mind and eat it without worry.

点击图片查看原图