·The three-month follow-up report on the implementation of "Beijing Municipal Domestic Waste Management Regulations" (Part 2) The
listing of Jingcai has "money scenes" and hidden worries The
price advantage has not yet formed excessive packaging, resulting in a lack of waste standards, different thresholds
Article 27 of Chapter 3 of the "Beijing Municipal Domestic Waste Management Regulations" that came into effect on May 1 this year clearly stipulates: "This city takes measures to gradually promote the listing of clean vegetables. The specific measures shall be formulated by the municipal commerce department in conjunction with the municipal agricultural and rural departments. In the past few days, a reporter from the Beijing Youth Daily learned from market visits that as the most effective and most effective form of “pre-sorting” food waste that has the closest connection with ordinary people’s vegetable baskets, more and more production companies, The market (farmer's market and supermarket), consumers and business experts agree, but there are still differences between concepts and practices. The seemingly simple eight words "gradually promote the listing of clean vegetables" in the regulations have actually foreshadowed the complicated promotion process of "the listing of clean vegetables", the arduous promotion of measures, and the multi-level connection of production and sales.
The "clean" of clean vegetables is not enough just to add "plastic wrap"
Many citizens often buy vegetables wrapped in plastic bags or plastic wrap in supermarkets. This kind of "clean vegetables" with roots removed, peeled, and rotten leaves removed is now gaining market share. "This kind of packaged vegetables that are often seen every day belong to packaged semi-finished vegetables, and the real concept of'clean vegetables' referred to in the "Regulations" is to sort out the vegetables, remove the inedible parts, cut and wash them, A product that is vacuum-packaged in a sterile environment during processing operations such as disinfection. It is mainly divided into ready-to-eat clean vegetables and ready-to-use clean vegetables." Lu Gaopeng, director of the Clean Vegetable Industry Committee of the China Cooperative Trade Enterprise Association, was interviewed by a reporter from Beijing Youth Daily Say.
Lu Gaopeng has been engaged in the clean vegetable processing industry in the 1990s. He told the Beijing Youth Daily that there are now seven or eight large-scale clean vegetable processing enterprises in Beijing, and the annual clean vegetable supply is about 650,000 tons. Some companies have deployed more than a dozen clean vegetable processing projects in Hebei and Tianjin around Beijing. Potato skins, celery leaves, shiitake mushroom roots, cauliflower stems and other tail vegetables are restored to the land as resources, reducing the amount of pre-dinner garbage entering Beijing. . Lu Gaopeng listed the yield rate of some common vegetables (that is, the proportion of vegetables that can be "potted" in 1 catty) to the reporter of Beiqing Daily. Lettuce is only 33%, potatoes are about 75%, and cauliflower is about 55%. Green onions are about 50%, cabbage is about 85%, and shiitake mushrooms are about 65%.
From this point of view, after clean vegetables are processed, tail vegetables generally account for 20 to 30% of the total weight of vegetables. Obviously, eating clean vegetables can reduce a large amount of pre-dinner kitchen waste, and also reduce energy such as water and electricity in the food cooking process. Therefore, clean vegetables is the most effective pre-sorting form of kitchen waste. According to comprehensive calculations, every 100 tons of hairy cabbage transported into the city will produce 20 tons of waste. The entry of clean vegetables into the city means that the domestic kitchen waste generated by vegetables can be reduced by 20%.
Mao Yongxi, a merchant who runs green onions in a wholesale market, told the reporter from Beijing Youth Daily that they pulled out the green onions with soil and leaves from the ground. After processing, 100 kilograms of green onions can yield about 75 kilograms of green onions with leaves; if they do not bring leaves only The leftovers are white, and 100 catties can yield about 65 catties. The treated green onions have almost no soil on the roots, only a few roots.
Mao Yongxi introduced that in recent years, especially since the implementation of the "Regulations" for more than three months, the demand for net onions in various markets and supermarkets in Beijing has increased significantly, and the transportation of net onions into Beijing can also reduce freight and farmer’s markets. Entrance fee. She predicts that in the winter vegetable storage season in November this year, the amount of scallions into Beijing will be further reduced, about less than 10% of the total.
In addition to large-scale clean vegetable processing enterprises, a reporter from Beijing Youth Daily has learned that many supermarkets in Beijing also have clean vegetable processing workshops, which promote the processing of semi-clean and clean vegetables. According to reports, starting every morning, Wumart’s self-built vegetable processing workshop cleans, cleans, slices and shreds onions, taro, potatoes, yam, lettuce, cucumber and other vegetables, and then delivers them to the store after vacuum packaging. "Leveraging on the advantage of the base's direct mining, we transported the woolen cabbage to the clean vegetable processing workshop for clean vegetable processing, reducing intermediate links and reducing sales costs. At the same time, it also promotes waste reduction." The relevant person in charge of Wumart Group introduced the Beijing Youth Daily reporter.
Jingcai "Qianjing" Supermarket focuses on young people
How is the net vegetable market? What top-level designs are there to ensure advancement? The relevant person in charge of the Municipal Bureau of Commerce revealed in an interview with a reporter from the Beijing Youth Daily that according to the plan of the Municipal Bureau of Commerce, the listing of Beijing Jingcai will take a step-by-step approach. The initial development will be mainly in agricultural product manufacturers, wholesale markets, and supermarket chains. Three links of production, sales and packaging. For example, in the production process, Beijing will incorporate the development of the clean vegetable industry into the city's vegetable industry development plan by building a clean vegetable standard system, and encourage large-scale entities to improve the clean vegetable processing capacity of vegetable production areas. At the same time, integrate vegetable production factors to ensure the quality and quantity of clean vegetable raw materials. In addition, the Bureau of Commerce stated that it will combine with the needs of the 2022 Winter Olympics and work with the Municipal Agriculture and Rural Bureau to vigorously develop clean vegetable and fresh vegetable processing enterprises. In addition, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce and Beijing Municipal Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs are currently formulating the "Guiding Opinions on Gradually Promoting the Listing of Clean Vegetables" to comprehensively promote the listing of clean vegetables and reduce the total amount of waste.
A reporter from the Beijing Youth Daily visited the market and learned that some agricultural product wholesale markets are reducing or exempting entrance fees to attract clean vegetables to enter the market and reduce the amount of garbage on the market.
In the fruit and vegetable section of many chain supermarkets such as Supermarket, Wumart, BHG, etc., reporters from Beijing Youth Daily saw that "semi-finished vegetables" with peeled green onions, peeled celery, and soiled potatoes and onions were all displayed prominently on the shelves. position. Cucumbers, tomatoes, broccoli, cabbage and other vegetables with bright colors and similar specifications are covered with plastic wrap and placed neatly on the shelves. This kind of semi-finished product packaged clean vegetables is usually packed in boxes or bags, and is affixed with a price tag, so customers don't have to wait in line for weighing.
According to Zhao Meng, Executive Deputy General Manager of Supermarket Development, “Leaf vegetables are also packed in bags to avoid direct contact with hands, which is also conducive to the prevention and control of the epidemic. Our supermarkets account for 70% of clean vegetables. Especially popular among office workers. Welcome to young people."
In addition, in the fresh-keeping area of some supermarkets such as Wumart and Huatang, the cut potato chips, fish and other ingredients, as well as coriander, green onion, ginger and garlic and other seasonings are combined into the clean vegetable packaging. The person in charge of Wumart’s Qinshanshui store said: “This is a cleaned semi-finished vegetable that has been cleaned and cut. The public can buy it and cook it directly.” It is understood that Wumart has been piloting ready-to-use cleaned vegetables in more than 30 stores from mid-July. , Some stores also launched buy two get one free or buy one get one free activities to attract consumers and cultivate consumption habits.
According to Lai Yang, the executive vice president of the Beijing Business Economics Association, it is now "the time when Jingcai entered Beijing." On the one hand, the "Regulations" provide compliance with a series of top-level designs. On the other hand, modern commercial development has reached a corresponding stage: "In the past, clean vegetables were difficult to popularize. The main reason is that after clean vegetables are processed, the shelf life is very short, and businesses cannot accurately reduce losses. , So the cost is higher. Nowadays, with the guarantee of cold chain logistics and the support of big data on the platform, supermarkets and production companies can accurately predict the sales scale, thereby achieving cost control. From this point of view, from non-clean vegetables to simple processing The whole consumption structure of fresh vegetables is changing, and then to semi-finished clean vegetables and clean vegetables, and the proportion of the latter will become higher and higher."
Worries about clean vegetables, price and excessive packaging make many people "wait and see"
Although all walks of life have reached a consensus on the listing of clean vegetables to a certain extent, and experts have also given the "theoretical logic" for cost control of clean vegetables, in practice, due to sales and other reasons, price is still the first piece of hindering consumption." stumbling block". According to a reporter from Beijing Youth Daily, compared with ordinary vegetables, sliced, shredded and vacuum-packed ready-to-use clean vegetables have a large number of production, packaging and other processing links and costs before they appear on the shelf. The price is generally more expensive than non-clean vegetables. Ordinary vegetables are 30%-40% more expensive.
Take lettuce as an example. Hema fresh peeled lettuce is sold at a price of 4.3 yuan per bag of 350g, 345g of clean lettuce shreds, 8.4 yuan per box, and 600g of ordinary lettuce at 7.9 yuan; in daily fresh, 400g shredded lettuce is sold The price is 9.9 yuan, and ordinary lettuce 500g-700g is 4.9 yuan. The price difference between clean and non-clean vegetables is clear at a glance.
In the interview, some consumers reported to the reporter of the Beiqing Daily: “If you buy semi-finished boxed vegetables, if you make 3 dishes a day, you will have at least 3 plastic trays and a lot of plastic wrap.” Ms. Wang, a citizen, said, "On the one hand, in response to the national call, consuming clean vegetables can reduce food waste, but on the other hand, it is precisely because buying clean vegetables produces a large amount of plastic waste such as plastic wrap and trays, which feels quite wasteful."
How to avoid over-packing and make Jingcai truly "clean"? "Sanitation and safety, environmental protection requirements for packaging materials, etc., are all parts of the clean vegetable standard that need to be clearly defined." Lu Gaopeng said that only with the increase in consumer acceptance, the scale of the clean vegetable industry can rapidly increase, while complying with strict standards Standardization forms professional guidance for the entire clean vegetable industry.
Expert advice
At present, clean vegetable processing enterprises generally lose money
Clean vegetable processing standards need to be improved
In the past three years, Professor Hong Lan from the School of Economics of Beijing Institute of Materials and Materials has conducted a special survey on large-scale clean vegetable processing enterprises in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. The project team concluded that the current clean vegetable processing enterprises are generally losing money, and it is difficult to rapidly increase the supply of clean vegetable in Beijing. Related conclusions such as government support.
Professor Hong Lan introduced that after visiting seven or eight clean vegetable processing enterprises, the project team found that the overall scale of the company was small and its development was limited by land and water resources. The lack of clean vegetable processing standards and quality and safety supervision systems became the development pain points of the clean vegetable industry.
For example, the scale of major clean vegetable processing enterprises in and around Beijing's suburbs has become a practical constraint. According to the survey, more than four-fifths of clean vegetable processing enterprises are new projects in recent years, and they are still difficult to scale. Only Yunong of Shounong Group and Kang'an Lifeng of Shouchuang Group have a daily processing capacity of more than 3 tons, which is a medium-sized production scale.
In addition, most companies report that there is a lack of space for processing and fresh-keeping storage, and the expansion of their production scale is restricted.
In terms of standards and quality and safety supervision systems, the environment of clean vegetable processing sites, personnel hygiene requirements, product storage and transportation, raw materials, etc. lack corresponding national standards and regulations, and the government also lacks complete quality and safety supervision supporting measures. As a result, the entry barriers of the clean vegetable market are uneven, and various low-price competition phenomena make the industry difficult to sustainably develop.
It is understood that the ready-to-use clean vegetable processing is currently under the management of the local agricultural department, and there is a lack of industry docking standards in terms of operating procedures, food specifications, preservation, and transportation, resulting in great differences in product quality among enterprises. Professor Hong Lan called on actively promoting cooperation between leading enterprises such as Shounong Yunong, Beijing Capital Kanganlifeng and scientific research institutes to formulate and improve relevant national standards as soon as possible, including but not limited to ready-to-use clean vegetable processing specifications, ready-to-eat clean vegetable processing specifications, and clean vegetable market circulation Regulate (including transportation), etc., while establishing a supporting supervision system involving multiple government, industry and market parties, raise market access thresholds, and prevent food safety problems.
"We suggest encouraging the primary processing of clean vegetable products in the place of production, or primary processing in the distribution center of the place of production, to reduce the burden of garbage disposal in the city. Large-scale catering companies that use clean vegetables or fresh food retail companies that operate clean vegetables will be given certain Rewards and subsidies for waste reduction and water saving." Professor Hong Lan said.
This edition of the article is also taken by our reporter Li Jia