In March 2010, Jiang Xinjie, who was already a reporter for China Youth Daily, once again became the focus of public opinion. An investigative report on the flow of gutter oil into the catering industry has made many Chinese subconsciously change their eating habits at the table.

On March 17, 2010, Jiang Xinjie published an article in China Youth Daily entitled "Encirclement and Suppression of Gutter Oil", in which he wrote: I don't know when the city's sewers have become a place for some people to get rich. Every day, they scoop up a large amount of dull, cloudy, reddish paste, and after only one night of filtration, heating, precipitation, and separation, these foul-smelling garbage can be transformed into clear "cooking oil", and finally sold at a low price and returned to people's tables. The main ingredient of this three-no product, known as "gutter oil", is still triglycerides, but it has many more pathogenic and carcinogenic toxic substances than real edible oil. "You must have eaten gutter oil, too." He Dongping, a professor at the School of Food Science and Engineering at Wuhan Institute of Technology, told a reporter from China Youth Daily. He is also the head of the oil and fats working group of the National Grain and Oil Standardization Committee. According to his estimates, there are 2 million ~ 3 million tons of gutter oil returned to the table every year in China. The total annual consumption of animal and vegetable oil by Chinese is about 22.5 million tons - that is, according to the proportion, if you eat 10 meals, you may encounter gutter oil.

The day after the report appeared, Professor He Dongping held a press conference and denied that he had mentioned that "2 million to 3 million tons of gutter oil flow back to the table every year in the country". On March 24, 2010, Jiang Xinjie gave more profound thought to this incident in the article "What Makes the Professor Who Lifted the "Cover" of Waste Oil Change His Words", "Discussing the problems of scientific testing of waste oil and the way out of solving the problem of waste oil is not intended to exaggerate the total amount and toxicity of waste oil. The reason why a popular science story has received so much attention is because there is a broad public opinion base behind it, that is, public concerns about food safety. Take a look at the media reports from all over the world this week: in Xi'an, a chain of hot pot restaurants that were refining waste oil was seized by the drug regulatory department that raided it; In Jinan, a TV reporter followed and photographed illegal traders salvaging gutter oil; In Shenzhen, unlicensed pig farms hidden in lychee forests are still secretly refining and selling water and oil; In Wuhan, the recycling and sale of gutter oil has formed a complete industrial chain, and the hotel sells the right to acquire it for tens of thousands of yuan every year...... Aren't these facts happening around you and me strong enough to dwell on that cold number?

On the same day, CCTV's "News 1+1" broadcast a special program "Gutter Oil: Still "Underground"? The following is a part of the program record:

Commentary:

"Encirclement and suppression of gutter oil", just a week ago, the report of "China Youth Daily" revealed an astonishing data, that is, we have 2 million to 3 million tons of gutter oil slipped back to the table every year.

The report was interviewed by He Dongping, a professor at Wuhan Institute of Industry, who was also the head of the oil and oil working group of the National Grain and Oil Standardization Committee, so the report immediately aroused strong attention from all walks of life. Dramatically, however, two days after the report came out, Professor He Dongping denied the claim.

He Dongping (Professor, Wuhan Institute of Industry):

It will definitely not die after being processed, it is not like melamine, which can kill people, but it is morally and ethically unbearable.

Commentary:

On March 19, He Dongping held a press conference, suggesting that the relevant government departments should step up the standardization of waste oil collection. At this press conference, he denied the data he had previously said. So, what happened in just two short days from the report to the press conference?

Jiang Xinjie (China Youth Daily):

(He said) More than 50 media called him in one day, including from abroad, and then leaders at all levels also called him, and he said that he was under a lot of pressure, and he said that his pressure was mainly on this number.

Narrator:

Two or three million tons is indeed a shocking number, but what are the so many phone calls that put a lot of pressure on him? Whether Professor Ho's change of tune was motivated by scientific rigor or by the pressure of these phone calls, we do not yet know. However, will Professor He's change of tone really calm the uproar in the past few days?

Jiang Xinjie:

This report itself discusses the difficulties of gutter oil detection, because our page is a scientific exploration page, and it has always been a popular science report, so I didn't expect this time.

Commentary:

Whose nerves did a popular science report touch in reality? Comparing the report on March 17 and the press conference on March 19, there are two main changes: first, He Dongping said that he has not adjusted the situation of waste oil in the country, nor has he said that 3 million tons of waste oil will flow back to the table; Second, the original statement that aflatoxin in gutter oil is 100 times more toxic than arsenic is also inappropriate, and he has not obtained effective evidence that gutter oil has entered the table.

Jiang Xinjie:

During the interview, the first thing I asked was how much waste oil there was, and Professor He said 2 million to 3 million tons at that time.

Commentary:

In fact, in this year's "Beijing Science and Technology News" report "Restaurant 'Gutter Oil'", Professor He also told the reporter of "Beijing Science and Technology News" that in the first half of 2009, about 2 million tons of gutter oil returned to the table across the country. Even at the press conference held by Professor He, he mentioned that according to statistics, 15% of China's annual consumption of oil, about 3.3 million tons of oil, becomes waste oil.

Jiang Xinjie:

How much of the waste oil is recycled, for example, to make biodiesel, or fertilizer, or soap, chemical products, and how much is made into gutter oil? I don't think you can find this proportion of gutter oil, but how much regular use there is, because this can be counted. I recently saw that the media in Hefei, Anhui Province did a survey, and they looked for regular recycling factories to see the scale of recycling each year, and found that they were less than one-third. In other words, two-thirds of waste grease may be unknown and do not know what it does.

Commentary:

In the midst of the controversy, in the past week, all parts of the country have raided and encircled gutter oil. The State Food and Drug Administration has also issued an emergency notice to strictly prevent gutter oil from flowing into the catering industry. In fact, the public is most concerned not only about the total amount and toxicity of gutter oil, but why has gutter oil been so unsightly for so many years, but it just can't be eradicated? After this encirclement and suppression, will gutter oil make a comeback like melamine? How can this long-standing disease be completely cured?

Host (Dong Qian):

Yan Song, what do you think of this phenomenon? On the one hand, the media said, in other words, that's what you said; On the other hand, the professor changed his tune and said I didn't say that, how do you make this judgment, who said it is true?

Bai Yansong (commentator):

I also noticed that when the professor changed his tune, many people were condemning the professor, saying how could he be a scientist and not stick to some of the scientific data you believe in his heart, etc.

But thinking about it from another angle, I think it's very understandable, because of what? Justice is in everyone, but the real pressure is on the people themselves. The reporter also said that because he had called the reporter and received more than 50 calls, this was just after the report came out, and then the leaders at all levels called him, and this pressure was there. We didn't feel the pressure when we were really indignant or something, and that's the first one.

Second, the axiom is far away, but the threat may be near you. From this point of view, as an individual, I think the professor can understand his approach after weighing it up.

Moderator:

What is the threat you are pointing at?

Bai Yansong:

Including him, he will feel that your interview with the media, for example, may be magnified, and he will be very worried about himself as the leader of the corresponding research group, including himself as a famous professor and so on.

In addition, I have received many, many calls of all kinds, what do you think many of our leaders have called him to talk about, "Very good, you said it well?" ”。

Moderator:

But let's go back and see what does it mean that he is a scholar who can overturn the inferences and conclusions that he has made for many years in two days?

Bai Yansong:

I think this is really the most worthy of our discussion today, in the process of transformation, why? First of all, he did have to change his tune. Why? Because when he was interviewed, he also used "about 2 million to 3 million tons, which is estimated to be about 2 million to 3 million tons". And this itself is very large, with 1 million tons of space in the middle. So, if you receive a question in the opposite direction, please show me evidence to explain whether it is 2 million to 3 million tons, and I believe he will not be able to come up with it.

Moderator:

If I were a professor, I would ask him, since you questioned me and said that my number was wrong, then you would tell me what the correct number was.

Bai Yansong:

Yes. This is why we should attract such attention in society, not the other way around, when we accumulate a large number of interviews, or the corresponding scientific data, and then make relevant inferences. What kind of attention? You can't question the questioner, because it is true that if you question the questioner, the questioner is not, first, the reporter is not the public prosecutor, and it is difficult for him to obtain all the information and grasp a large amount of evidence. As a scientist, he is not the leader of a national part, he can only do Wuhan, or a local area, and make inferences based on some numbers.

I'm thinking that when I manage gutter oil, I don't take it too seriously and not too seriously, but when I question the professor, I am serious and true, and when I am serious and serious, the words that the professor is talking about have a problem. I think society should form a kind of society that cannot question the doubter, but should do the opposite, and come up with evidence to prove that he is wrong, or that he is right. If you think that he is wrong and has a problem, please show evidence that he is wrong, I think this will form a kind of social positive interaction?

In particular, it should be noted that if journalists and scholars question topics involving public interests, health, safety, and other factors, they cannot question the questioners' data in reverse. He really can't come up with a correct (data), and if you want to question him, you have to change your mind when you question him, because it really can't be 100% scientific.

Moderator:

Since the professor is questioning what is related to what each of us eats at the table, this is called "food for the people". Supposedly, no matter how flimsy the figure he proposes, we should rather believe it than believe it.

Bai Yansong:

So at this time, I felt that there was no need for us to pursue the professor's change. There are various factors in his own person, and we have just talked about it, and if we go back to science itself, it is indeed not so 100% invulnerable.

From the point of view of the relevant parts of the government, in this report and the relevant figures, whether it is changed or not. But actions have also come out, and you have asked for this kind of surveillance everywhere, for example, to welcome reports from the masses and so on.

In addition, the lid has been lifted, and the whole society will pay attention to this topic. I took a look, and many media across the country, constantly in the southeast and northwest, are also paying attention to this topic. I think this is a benign turn, and we should be grateful to the professor and to the relevant parts for this quick action. At the same time, I will also think about a topic, for example, an associate professor said, we say that whether it is 2 million or 3 million tons, there is such a figure that is clearly placed here, the total amount of edible oil we import every year and the edible oil we sell is much less than the total amount of edible oil used in the market. Where did these hundreds of tons of extra oil come from? I don't think the numbers of "1, 2, 3, 4" are mentioned here, but it gives us a serious warning, and I think we should think carefully and monitor where these extra millions of tons of oil come from.

In response to the problem of "gutter oil", on March 18, 2010, the Office of the State Food and Drug Administration issued the "Emergency Notice on Strictly Preventing "Gutter Oil" from Flowing into the Catering Service Link" (Food and Drug Administration Ban Shi [2010] No. 25). The "Emergency Notice" pointed out: Recently, some media reported that criminals processed "gutter oil". In order to strictly prevent "gutter oil" from flowing into the catering service link and effectively protect the food safety of consumers, please quickly organize the supervision and inspection of the procurement and use of edible oils and fats by catering service units, and strictly check the purchase inspection records of catering service units and the implementation of the certificate and ticket system. At the same time, it is necessary to attach great importance to the complaints and reports of the masses, and verify the clues in a timely manner, if it is found that the source of edible oil purchased by the catering service unit is unknown, or the purchase and use of "gutter oil", the catering service unit should be supervised to immediately stop using and destroy, and at the same time strictly investigate and deal with it in accordance with the law, and if the circumstances are serious, the license shall be revoked. The "Emergency Notice" also requires the health departments (bureaus) of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, and the Food and Drug Administration to report the supervision and inspection situation to the Food Safety Supervision Department of the State Food and Drug Administration before the end of April.

Subsequently, in order to regulate the catering industry and food market, the Ministry of Health's "Measures for the Administration of Catering Service Licensing" and "Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Safety in Catering Services" will be officially implemented on May 1, and a maximum fine of 100,000 yuan can be imposed on the production of processed food with recycled food as raw materials. On May 4, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, and the Ministry of Agriculture issued the "Notice on Organizing and Carrying out the Pilot Work of Resource Utilization and Harmless Treatment of Urban Kitchen Waste" (Fa Gai Ban Huan Zi [2010] No. 1020), deciding to organize and carry out the pilot work of resource utilization and harmless treatment of urban kitchen waste.

To combat gutter oil, various departments have already begun to act. In this incident, Jiang Xinjie chose an article topic closely related to people's livelihood, excavated the shady scenes, and thought rationally, showing us his conscience and realistic spirit and other qualities that an excellent journalist should have. The report has aroused widespread concern among the people and government departments, and has provided a realistic basis for the government to better formulate policies. Afterwards, someone commented: This is the best I have ever seen