英闻天下——354 Beijing to Restrict Online Food Sales

 　　Beijing has issued new food safety regulations to restrict online food sales.

 

　　Food items will be placed in three different categories: pre-packaged foods, bulk foods, and dairy products.

 

　　Food retailers¹ without a storefront will be banned from selling bulk foods and dairy products.

 

　　On Taobao.com, China's massive online shopping site, more than 17,000 items are sold under the "bulk foods" category, including sweets, biscuits, crispy rice, chocolates and nuts.

 

　　Wang Zhanying, an official from the food department of the administration says:

 

　　"Bulk food sold in online shops has to go through many delivery and packing and sub-packing processes. Since they don't have a real shop, it's hard to ensure hygiene² and safety."

 

　　And for dairy products, the official says:

 

　　"Online purchases of milk powder are risky³ and can get out of control. It is especially hard to trace online purchases of overseas infant formula products."

 

　　Bloggers reactions:

 

　　1. Indifference⁴ to the new regulation

 

　　"Forget about all these regulations — we need better implementation⁵."

 

　　"Local laws and regulations like these cannot possibly limit online sales of milk powder."

 

　　2. Prefer unlicensed stores to the licensed⁶ ones

 

　　"The online shop where I purchase a certain brand of cheese has a good record, so I doesn't worry about the quality at all."

 

　　"They are cutting our purchasing channels again. Does it matter if the food retailers has or has not a shopfront? I believe the tainted⁷ milk was mostly bought in supermarkets."

 

　　3. Purchase online because of the greater variety of products that can be found and cheaper prices

 

　　"Although there are abundant and various types of foods available in supermarkets, the number of imported food and regional specialties⁸ is limited and sometimes the prices are high. I like to purchase food online because it allows me to buy food without geographical⁹ limitation and enables me to enjoy the best prices."

 

　　A friend of mine said she spends about 4,000 yuan every year on online food shopping, mostly to buy specialties, for instance, United States-imported avocados, some certain brand of cheese, neither of which are commonly seen in the capital city's supermarkets.

 

　　There is no figure to show exactly how many people buy food online annually¹⁰. But the figure from Taobao.com, one of the largest online platforms, suggests more than 10 percent of the population in Shanghai bought snacks online in 2011, the highest proportion among different provincial¹¹ regions in China. The total population of Shanghai is around 300 million.

1 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

2 hygiene   

n.健康法，卫生学 （a.hygienic）

参考例句：

• Their course of study includes elementary hygiene and medical theory.他们的课程包括基础卫生学和医疗知识。
• He's going to give us a lecture on public hygiene.他要给我们作关于公共卫生方面的报告。

3 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

4 indifference   

n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎

参考例句：

• I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。

5 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

6 licensed   

adj.得到许可的v.许可，颁发执照(license的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The new drug has not yet been licensed in the US. 这种新药尚未在美国获得许可。
• Is that gun licensed? 那支枪有持枪执照吗？

7 tainted   

adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏

参考例句：

• The administration was tainted with scandal. 丑闻使得政府声名狼藉。
• He was considered tainted by association with the corrupt regime. 他因与腐败政府有牵连而名誉受损。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 specialties   

n.专门，特性，特别；专业( specialty的名词复数 )；特性；特制品；盖印的契约

参考例句：

• Great Books are popular, not pedantic. They are not written by specialists about specialties for specialists. 名著绝不引经据典，艰深难懂，而是通俗易读。它们不是专家为专业人员撰写的专业书籍。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学
• Brain drains may represent a substantial reduction in some labor force skills and specialties. 智力外流可能表示某种劳动力技能和特长大量减少。 来自辞典例句

9 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

10 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

11 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。