英闻天下——200 China Fighting Food Waste during Holiday Season

 　　Experts in China are calling for more regulations to control food wastage.

 

　　This follows Chinese leader Xi Jingping's call to avoid extravagance during bureaucratic¹ visits.

 

　　Figures show 8 million tons of food – worth 300 Billion Yuan is wasted annually² here in the country, with public officials and civil servants said to be responsible for 92 percent of that.

 

　　Following Xi Jingping's call, a number of traditional year end parties by government officials have reportedly been downgraded.

 

　　However the wastage isn't just being blamed on government officials, with restaurant owners in Beijing saying their customers are often as guilty.

 

　　"Normally, two people can finish one or two dishes, but if they end up ordering five or six dishes, they sure couldn't finish them all. Food waste happens most often during business dinners, with some dishes going straight to the waste. "

 

　　This spring festival, apart from encouraging people to order less, 10 big dining brands in Beijing will also introduce a half-portion option to allow people more variety while avoiding waste.

 

　　However a Professor of Public Management, Zhang Zhixin with the Capital University of Economics and Business, says the anti-food-waste drive needs stricter rules.

 

　　"We should try to eliminate undocumented officials' collective spending by tightening³ our budgetary rules. By doing so I think we can avoid corruption⁴ and unnecessary banquets."

 

　　According to media reports, the volume of leftovers⁵ in restaurants across the country is estimated to be enough to feed 200 million people annually.

 

　　A recent study estimated the total of global food loss and waste to around one third of the edible⁶ food produced for human consumption, amounting to about 1.3 billion tons per year.

1 bureaucratic   

adj.官僚的，繁文缛节的

参考例句：

• The sweat of labour washed away his bureaucratic airs.劳动的汗水冲掉了他身上的官气。
• In this company you have to go through complex bureaucratic procedures just to get a new pencil.在这个公司里即使是领一支新铅笔，也必须通过繁琐的手续。

2 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。

3 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

4 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

5 leftovers   

n.剩余物，残留物，剩菜

参考例句：

• He can do miracles with a few kitchen leftovers.他能用厨房里几样剩饭做出一顿美餐。
• She made supper from leftovers she had thrown together.她用吃剩的食物拼凑成一顿晚饭。

6 edible   

n.食品，食物；adj.可食用的

参考例句：

• Edible wild herbs kept us from dying of starvation.我们靠着野菜才没被饿死。
• This kind of mushroom is edible,but that kind is not.这种蘑菇吃得，那种吃不得。