Desperate sperm banks lower the bar on donors' requirements

China's sperm banks have been facing an even more severe shortage of healthy sperm since the country's 30-year one-child policy was lifted at the beginning of this year.

As a result, sperm banks have started to relax their requirements for donors and advertise to offer various rewards toward willing donors.

A sperm bank in central China's Henan Province recently promised 5,000 yuan (about $730) for semen from qualified donors, and lifted its requirements on donors' height and educational level.

A staff member from the Henan sperm bank said last year they required donors to be healthy, at least 170 centimeters tall with at least technical secondary school level education.

Meanwhile, they must be aged between 22 and 45 years old without bad habits such as smoking and drinking, the person said. But now requirements on donors' height and education level have been dropped.

Besides, the bank would also keep donors' semen for 30 years free of charge, and promised to provide them with reproductive health checks for free.

Earlier this year, an online advert encouraging people to donate sperm to win iPhone 6s had gone viral in China.

Stats show that there were over 5,400 sperm donors in Henan in 2014; however the number declined by half in 2015 and 2016.

Meanwhile, the rate of qualified donors in Henan dwindled from 24.3% in 2010 to 19.7% in 2016, People's Daily Online reported.

Any forms of commercial sperm banks are not permitted in China, but the country now has 17 public sperm banks.

China's sperm banks have been dealing with shortages of healthy sperm for years due to a variety reasons such as high demand, a low ratio of qualified donors, and unwillingness to donate.

Chinese traditional values associated sperm with vitality, and some believe donating sperm goes against Confucian values, reported International Business Times.

Reportedly, among those few people who were willing to donate, half of the donations were wasted because of sexually transmitted diseases or failure to meet the standards.