Asian Night Market 2026 — Food Safety Statement

On the morning of Sunday, June 14th, the Marupo ACTS team received messages via social media and feedback channels reporting possible food poisoning symptoms after attending the Ann Arbor Asian Night Market. We want to acknowledge these reports directly. We are aware, we take these reports seriously, and we extend our heartfelt wishes for a swift and full recovery to everyone affected.

After these messages were shared with the Night Market coordinators, we immediately reached out to the individuals who contacted us and initiated contact with the Washtenaw County Health Department to determine next steps. In response to our follow-up, impacted individuals shared details of their symptoms and the foods they consumed at the event, and Health Department officials requested a list and contact information for all food vendors. Marupo ACTS provided this information, along with copies of vendor food establishment licenses and ServSafe food manager certifications submitted as part of the application to participate.

If you experienced symptoms after attending, the Washtenaw County Health Department asks that you report directly to them. This is the most effective way to support their investigation. You can reach them by phone at 734-544-6700 or file a report online at:

https://www.washtenaw.org/1569/Report-a-Foodborne-Illness-Food-Poisonin

Your cooperation in reporting to the Health Department will assist their work and help us build safer events going forward. Marupo ACTS will continue to collaborate with the Washtenaw County Health Department on these reports and will also continue to coordinate with them on future Night Market events to strengthen on-site food safety.

What we did this year

As an event organizer, we always strive to make our events both enjoyable and, above all, safe. In selecting food vendors for this year’s market, our process included:

• Requiring all food vendors to provide an official food establishment license along with a ServSafe food manager certification or equivalent.
• Alternatively, vendors could offer food items prepared and sold under Michigan’s Cottage Food Law, which limits offerings to lower-risk products.
• For these food vendors, we required a certificate of completion of MSU’s Cottage Food Law training course.

While these measures do not guarantee that an incident will never occur, when one does arise, we take every report seriously.

What we are working toward

Given the continued growth and scale of this event, we are committed to collaboration with the Washtenaw County Health Department in maintaining strong food safety standards for future events. Measures we are exploring include:

• Having an inspector connect with Marupo ACTS ahead of the event for additional preventative review.
• Having an inspector present on the day of the event to help check setup and vendor food safety before sales begin.

We are grateful to everyone who reported their experience, and we thank our community for its understanding and support as we continue to do our part to address this.

If you have additional information to share, you can reach us by direct message on Instagram (@marupoacts) or by emailing [email protected].