This is the shocking moment a cafe worker in China was caught mixing tea with her bare hands.

The female employee sparked outrage as she carelessly prepared the drinks while completely disregarding hygiene.

Footage shows the staff squeezing lemon juice into cups before pouring in milk and tea. With ungloved hands, she then churned up the mixture, scooping up spilled liquid from the counter back into the serving glasses.

Chinese milk tea chain Chagee said in a statement on January 6 that the incident happened at its Baolong City Square outlet in Zhangzhou, Fujian province.

The company said the employee was mimicking the viral trend of 'Indian-style' milk tea to increase online traffic. The beverages she made were not sold, and the store was cleaned up immediately after, it said.

The statement continued: 'We are shocked and outraged by this. This behaviour completely deviates from our commitment to food safety and honest business practices, and crosses the bottom line of our brand values. We will not tolerate such behaviour. Food safety is a matter we will not tolerate being trivialised.'

The worker has reportedly been fired, and the store manager and regional supervisor were both demoted following the incident. The outlet has also been suspended indefinitely 'for rectification'.

Chagee added: 'We cherish every tea customer and will continue to scrutinise every cup of tea with even stricter standards. This incident has served as a wake-up call, highlighting areas for improvement in our staff training and daily supervision.'