[Guangming Times Review] Restricting excessive packaging makes dumplings return to their original meaning

【Review of Bright Times】

　　In order to make the packaging of moon cakes and rice dumplings "slim down" and "lightly loaded", the State Administration for Market Regulation (Standard Committee) recently approved the release of the National Standard No. 1 Amendment to the "Restriction of Excessive Packaging Requirements for Food and Cosmetics". The implementation date is August 2022. 15th.

According to this mandatory national standard, the number of packaging layers of rice dumplings and moon cakes cannot exceed 3 layers at most, and the packaging materials shall not use precious metals and mahogany materials.

　　The phenomenon of excessive packaging of dumplings and moon cakes has existed for many years.

According to previous media reports, some mooncake gift boxes are luxuriously packaged, and a small piece of mooncake packaging can have 6 layers.

This not only increases the burden on consumers, causing the phenomenon of "high-priced mooncakes" from time to time, but also causes a waste of resources that cannot be underestimated.

Statistics show that packaging waste in my country accounts for about 30% to 40% of urban domestic waste.

Among these packaging wastes, most of them are produced by over-packaging.

　　Last year, the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the national standard "Restriction of Excessive Packaging Requirements for Food and Cosmetics", and set a two-year transition period for enterprises and markets, which will be officially implemented on September 1, 2023.

This time, the relevant departments revised the national standards, further refined the relevant requirements, and advanced the implementation date by almost a year, reflecting the urgency of curbing the excessive packaging of commodities.

　　From the perspective of environmental protection, it is a global trend to curb the excessive packaging of commodities, and many countries have already taken action.

my country's newly revised Law on the Prevention and Control of Environmental Pollution by Solid Waste also clearly stipulates that producers and operators should abide by the mandatory standards restricting excessive packaging of commodities and avoid excessive packaging.

In addition to environmental protection, curbing the excessive packaging and luxury packaging of products has special significance in our realistic context.

　　When talking about the phenomenon of excessive packaging, the first thing that many people think of is the products such as rice dumplings, moon cakes, tea, etc. They all have a common feature, that is, they are all "good gifts" in daily life.

Under the influence of human feelings and face culture, such commodities are often the "hardest hit areas" of excessive packaging.

In the consumption concept of many people, once the gift is simple and simple, it seems a little out of hand.

Therefore, some businessmen are also willing to go out of their way to cater to this concept in this regard.

Under the mutual reinforcement of the profit-seeking impulse of merchants and the concept of social consumption, the phenomenon of excessive packaging and luxury packaging has become more and more intense.

There is a considerable social necessity to curb this trend from the source in the form of mandatory standards.

　　Reciprocity is a normal phenomenon in interpersonal communication, and we don't have to demonize it.

Our traditional culture also has the beautiful meaning of "ceremony over affection".

Those luxuriously packaged moon cakes and zongzi gift boxes that cost hundreds or thousands of yuan often become "people who eat don't buy, those who buy don't eat", which has deviated from the normal interpersonal communication track and distorted its original The festivals and the connotations of human feelings carried by it not only increase the burden of human feelings, but even become a tool of corruption.

In this sense, curbing excessive packaging will actually help to return the moon cakes, rice dumplings and other festive gifts to their original intentions and return the love to the original.

　　Of course, the mandatory standard only provides a basic guideline for the packaging of related commodities, it is not intended to limit the business autonomy of enterprises.

On the contrary, after clarifying the standards, enterprises can create new packaging styles, such as returning to simplicity, natural style, and reducing packaging costs, which can not only improve the "cost-effectiveness" of products, shorten the distance with more consumers, but also help promote The innovation of consumption concept.

At the same time, competition between enterprises can also focus more on the quality and taste of products, rather than focusing on "showing off skills" on packaging.

(Author: Zhu Changjun, a media commentator)