[People's Livelihood Investigation Bureau] By following institutions and colleges, can snacks also be used to "false academic qualifications"?

　　Editor's note:

　　This is the People's Livelihood Investigation Bureau, investigating changes in people's livelihood where no one has seen it before. Pay attention to what you want to pay attention to and what you haven’t paid attention to, and investigate what you want to see and what you haven’t seen.

　　China News Service, February 4 (China News reporter Xie Yiguan) Huanong yogurt is well-known in South China; Shizhuang oatmeal, which relies on its "connotation" to win the world; Southwest University's konjac shreds, which is good news for those who want to lose weight; the roasted sweet potato industry's top brand "Internet celebrity" Yanshu No. 25; black pickled cabbage featured on "A Bite of China"...

　　In recent years, an “academic school” has emerged in the snack world, capturing the hearts of many foodies. However, despite their popularity, these "highly educated" snacks are also mixed with some "educational fraud" elements.

By using the name of a scientific research institution, these snacks were “cracked down”

　　"I've recently become obsessed with Dian Erwa potato chips. They are crunchy, spicy and very delicious." Consumer Linlin (pseudonym) said, "I heard they were developed by the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, so I plan to buy some more to try. "

　　She is a senior lover of "academic" food. "I have previously placed orders for Professor Huang's roasted chicken from Nanjing Agricultural University, and Fantianwa spicy strips from Hunan Agricultural University." In Linlin's view, with the establishment of scientific research institutes With the endorsement, I feel that these foods will be more reliable.

　　There are many consumers with similar ideas. On social platforms, many netizens who bought "highly educated" snacks said they placed their orders because they saw the words "Academy of Agricultural Sciences".

  Screenshot of an e-commerce platform.

　　Seizing this traffic code, more and more “academic” snacks began to appear on e-commerce platforms.

　　However, many people questioned in the relevant product comment area whether this has anything to do with the Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and is it produced by the Academy of Agricultural Sciences?

　　On the consumer service platform Black Cat Complaints, searching for "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" will bring up dozens of complaints. In addition to issues related to food safety, there are also questions about false advertising of products. For example, a consumer said that some merchants claimed to be potato chips from the Academy of Agricultural Sciences (R&D), but the actual goods they received were not correct.

　　The reporter searched based on the clues provided by the consumer and found that although some merchants had set "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" in the keywords, there was no wording "jointly developed with the Academy of Agricultural Sciences" on the product packaging.

　　Regarding some potato chip brands that are printed as jointly developed with the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences or the affiliated research institutes of the Guizhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the reporter also contacted the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the Guizhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences respectively. Among them, the staff of the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences said, "and There is technical support for the Dianerwa brand and there is no cooperation with other brands of potato chips." Staff from the Guizhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences reported that "technical support is provided to Hongkuo, Tian Auntie and other brands."

　　In addition to "Agricultural University" snacks, some "Agricultural University" related snacks also have high online sales. For example, under the banner of Northeast Agricultural University, the "90 Agricultural University" sells vegetable rolls, triangular bread, etc. In this regard, Northeast Agricultural University told reporters that these products are not produced and operated by the school.

  Screenshot of an e-commerce platform.

　　The reporter noticed that in 2023, among the 13 online foods randomly selected by the Shanghai Consumer Protection Commission that claimed to be developed by the "Academy of Agricultural Sciences", "Agricultural University" and other institutions, 5 products were clearly denied by relevant agencies in reply letters. Related, 4 relevant institutions did not provide a clear response. Among them, the products that were clearly denied any connection by relevant agencies include the "90 Agricultural University" vegetable rolls that are claimed to be related to "Northeast Agricultural University".

　　In addition, the "Haofu Oat Bran Ring" claims to be "the result of many years of research by oat experts from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Zhangjiakou Academy of Agricultural Sciences", and the "Black Diamond 7+3 Vitality Instant Oatmeal" developed by the Agricultural Products Processing Research Institute of the Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences. " and "Feng Heming Slow Carbon Twelve-Color Brown Rice" claimed to be developed by Jiangnan University were also "counterfeited".

Lawyer: Businessmen fraudulently use the name of a university, which constitutes false propaganda

　　Merchants' behavior of "forcibly swaying" universities and agricultural science institutes in product promotion is undoubtedly treating scientific research institutes as "gold-letter signs."

　　According to Yan Bing, senior partner of Times Jiuhe Law Firm, the merchants involved in the incident fraudulently used the names and certifications of the "Agricultural University" and "Agricultural University", which is nothing more than trying to gain the credibility of the "Agricultural University" and "Agricultural University" in the food field. Cause potential consumers to have a false belief that the food they sell is of higher quality or safety.

　　He told reporters that according to Article 28 of the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China, the merchant's behavior is false advertising and constitutes false publicity.

　　"At the same time, in accordance with the provisions of Article 55 of the Advertising Law of the People's Republic of China, the market supervision and management department may order to stop publishing advertisements, order advertisers to eliminate the impact within the corresponding scope, and impose a fine of not less than three times but not more than five times of the advertising cost. If the advertising costs cannot be calculated or are obviously low, a fine of not less than 200,000 yuan but not more than 1 million yuan will be imposed," Yan Bing said.

　　The reporter noticed that in 2021, eight departments including the Ministry of Education issued the "Opinions on Regulating the Registration and Use of "University" and "College" Names (hereinafter referred to as the "Opinions").

　　The "Opinions" require that, except for approved universities, colleges and internal institutions established by them or organizations initiated by them and registered in accordance with the law, other organizations shall not be used in external publicity such as plaques, advertisements and other various activities. The words "university" and "college".

　　The "Opinions" also mentioned that those who still use the words "university" and "college" in violation of regulations to carry out activities after the expiration date shall, in accordance with the principle of supervisory and territorial jurisdiction, be ordered by the education, institutional establishment, human resources and social security, civil affairs, market supervision and other departments to make corrections or make corrections in accordance with the law. Investigate and punish; if false and illegal advertising or publicity is involved, the market supervision department will order it to stop and punish it in accordance with the law.

  Screenshot of the Ministry of Education website.

　　In addition to the corresponding civil infringement and administrative responsibilities that merchants need to bear, Zhao Zhanzhan, a lawyer at Beijing Jiawei Law Firm, told reporters, "This kind of behavior is also suspected of constituting fraud on consumers, and according to law, they need to bear the legal liability of refunding one price and paying three indemnity."

Scientific research institutions also need to take the initiative to “crack down on counterfeiting”

　　The low cost of violating the law and the difficulty in distinguishing the authenticity of goods from fake ones make businesses "take risks" and take advantage of consumers' natural trust in scientific research institutions to "clinch institutions" and "clinch experts".

　　Although this kind of behavior has brought benefits to merchants in the short term, in the long run, it will cause "a hundred harms and no benefit." Not only do merchants need to bear tort liability, but in the view of Liu Junhai, a professor at the Law School of Renmin University of China, this move also damages people. The academic reputation of universities and scientific research institutions has been "smeared" and has a negative impact on genuine "highly educated" products.

　　On social platforms, reporters noticed that there have been voices such as "products sold under the banner of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences are fake", causing "regular troops" to be accidentally injured.

　　With the improvement of living standards, people pay more attention to quality and health in consumption. Oatmeal, yogurt and other foods developed by well-known agricultural colleges and scientific research institutions cater to consumers' health needs and should be a win-win situation. However, for the sake of profit, some businessmen "collapse" with universities and the Academy of Agricultural Sciences, resulting in "lose-lose" for both parties. How to change this situation?

　　Liu Junhai believes that on the one hand, regulatory authorities must increase supervision and exercise the powers of administrative guidance, market access, and market supervision conferred by law in accordance with the law, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, and standardize the order of market competition. On the other hand, scientific research institutions must also "prove their innocence" and take the initiative to "fight counterfeiting" while "cherishing their feathers" and choosing cooperative units carefully. In addition, consumers also need to learn to distinguish.

　　Among the "academic" snacks, some are "self-produced and sold", some are cooperative research and development, and some only provide technical support. In order to avoid consumer misunderstandings, merchants also need to not be "vague" when promoting. To avoid misunderstanding. (over)