Xinhua News Agency, Wuhan, August 18th, title: To curb "tip waste", how can "new tricks" form a long-term mechanism as soon as possible?

  Xinhua News Agency reporter

  Restaurants in many places offer half- and small-dish dishes, "N-1" ordering is advocated when many people eat, and packaging is advocated after meals... Recently, reporters have visited Hubei, Shanghai, Fujian and other places and found that they are striving to promote strict economy , To curb "tip waste", some industry associations and catering units frequently produce "new tricks". Can the new measures be effectively implemented? Which waste phenomenon is prone to occur frequently? How can we better build a long-term mechanism as soon as possible?

Practicing economy, issuing new initiatives and "new tricks" in many places

  A proposal was recently widely spread in Wuhan, Jiangcheng.

  This proposal issued by the Wuhan Catering Industry Association clearly proposes the implementation of the "N-1" ordering model, that is, 10 guests order 9 people’s dishes, and if it’s not enough, add more dishes to ensure that customers eat well while eating. , To eliminate food waste from the source; for two or three guests to eat, the catering unit launches half and small portions to meet the diverse needs of consumers under the premise of economy...

  The relevant person in charge of the Wuhan Food and Beverage Association revealed that the recent initiative is also hoping to further consolidate the results of the "CD Action" and effectively cultivate the habit of saving.

  The Fuzhou Catering and Cooking Industry Association also issued a proposal on August 12, advocating that the "ordering off" and the "closing off" should be properly and economically. At the Juchunyuan Hotel in Fuzhou, the reporter saw that small portion dishes and platter dishes have become regulars on the table. When ordering, the waiter will remind customers to avoid waste for some similar dishes.

  During a visit in Shanghai, the reporter found that the "saving food without wasting" initiative has been displayed in many business districts in Shanghai. In the Shanghai World Expo source business district, prominent places in the shopping malls are posted to encourage "CD-ROM" posters, and on the big screens in the core area, "Save food", "Eliminate waste", "Cherish food is to cherish the fruits of labor" and other promotional content Also eye-catching.

  According to Lu Xia, director of the Civilization Creation Department in Shanghai's Pudong New Area, the local area is also cooperating with third-party food delivery platforms. "We hope that the catering companies on these takeaway platforms can provide consumers with more choices in the amount of dishes, such as half serving, serving, one serving and half serving, two servings, etc."

  Pudong New Area also cooperates with the social organization "Food Bank" to promote the concept of conservation through activities such as "Food Recycling". “We have set up 25 food circulation points in the whole district to promote supermarkets, households, and individuals to put excess food into circulation points, and share food with people in need through standardized procedures and operations.” Lu Xia said.

Part of the waste problem still occurs frequently

  How serious is the "waste on the tip of the tongue" problem?

  “The average amount of food waste in the catering industry is about 93 grams per person per meal, and the waste rate is about 12%. The amount of food waste per capita varies significantly depending on factors such as cities, restaurant types, and dining purposes. Calculated based on the number of catering in cities, The total amount of food waste in urban catering in China is about 17 million tons per year.” This is a 2015 survey of 3357 consumer behaviors in 195 catering establishments in Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, and Lhasa by the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

  "17 million tons of wasted food is equivalent to 3% of the national food production in 2015." said Cheng Shengkui, a researcher at the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

  Over the years, waste on the dining table is still serious. “The larger the restaurant, the more serious the food waste, because there are more business gatherings, friends gatherings, and banquets in large restaurants. In these occasions, people pay more attention to face rather than stomach.” Cheng Shengkui said.

  At noon on August 17, when the reporter visited a large hotel that was hosting a wedding banquet, they saw that the guests had already left the table one after another, but there was more left on the table, and some dishes left more than half.

  "In the past, sometimes leftovers from a restaurant could feed a pig farm." Huang Lubing, president of the Fuzhou Catering and Cooking Industry Association, said that some people think that eating out of food means that there are fewer dishes, and the owner is not enthusiastic enough. "For the sake of face, it is common for 10 people to order 18 dishes or even more than 20 dishes."

  Some cafeterias and unit canteens are also the "hardest hit areas" for waste. According to the relevant person in charge of the Hubei Xianning Cooking Hotel Industry Association, buffets are generally charged at a fixed rate. Some guests take a large amount of meals but cannot finish them, resulting in waste.

  "One yuan meal" is one of the benefits provided to employees by some units. The unit provides certain subsidies to the canteen contractor, so that the meal price for employees is as low as "one yuan". But cheap meals also make prices lose their regulatory role. On the one hand, employees are prone to waste under the psychological hint of "is it just one yuan?" On the other hand, due to considerable subsidies, the canteen contractor has no cost awareness and motivation to stop waste.

  The problem of waste in the canteens of primary and secondary schools cannot be ignored either. Cheng Shengkui said that the quality of on-campus dining is closely related to students' wasteful behavior. Too few choices of food and poor taste are the main problems. In addition, comparing the three campus catering methods of lunch, buffet, and combined meals, the waste of lunch is the most serious. "Bad eating habits and lack of food education education are the root causes of food waste on campus." Cheng Shengkui said.

From "oral" to "hand", establishing a long-term mechanism is the key

  How to stop "containing waste" from staying on the slogan and establish a long-term mechanism for "saving food"?

  Professor Han Qiang of East China University of Political Science and Law believes that "restaurants need to provide half a serving" and other practices can be fixed in the form of laws and regulations after thorough discussion. "The main target of the regulation is very particular. The dining habits of the people should be promoted; for catering service companies, mandatory regulatory measures can be explored."

  The Wuhan Catering Industry Association plans to incorporate the implementation of relevant proposals into the association's related evaluation work. Huang Lubing, president of the Fuzhou Catering and Cooking Industry Association, introduced that the association plans to include the prohibition of food waste as a rigid indicator in the evaluation of the top ten restaurants and top ten celebrity chefs in Fuzhou.

  Relevant departments in Shanghai stated that in the future, they will start to establish systems and mechanisms for reporting, complaints, and special inspections on catering waste; guide and promote relevant departments and industry associations to incorporate the requirements of "CD Action" into the selection index system for civilized restaurants, rest assured restaurants, and green restaurants. , Explore the establishment of a "red and black list" list of catering companies.

  It is important to practice conservation and cultivate a social atmosphere that conserves food. Lu Xia believes that the idea of ​​saving food should start from the youth. "We are communicating with the district education department to provide more reasonable catering in the student cafeteria, including more precise meals." (Reporters Liang Jianqiang, Du Kang, Hu Jiefei, Wu Jianfeng)