The following information is provided for your reference only.

It is not easy to say that I love you.

------------. Yesterday, the reporter found in an interview in Zhuhai that a kind of sterilized tableware sealed with plastic film appeared in some dining places; The reporter learned that Shenzhen and other places have recently begun to promote this kind of "assured tableware" provided by disinfection centers outside the catering operation points. However, when these bowls and chopsticks enter restaurants, restaurant operators often shut them out or shelve them on the grounds that they are too troublesome and worried that guests will question their unsanitary tableware. Diners are willing to accept it, but they are not willing to bear the cost of one yuan per person. As soon as the "rest assured tableware" was born, it faced many embarrassment.

Text/photo reporter Chen Zhijia

Background: The disinfection of tableware in restaurants is not standardized

The advent of "assured tableware" stems from the fact that many consumers are not assured about the disinfection of tableware in restaurants in this era of fast food.

It is understood that the health supervision department has strict regulations on the sanitary conditions of dining places. According to the requirements, tableware disinfection in dining places and collective canteens can be divided into two categories: drug disinfection and physical disinfection. After removing residues and soaking in alkaline water, drug disinfection must go through two steps: soaking in disinfectant and washing; Physical disinfection needs two steps: washing with clean water and disinfection in disinfection cabinet.

"If the tableware is disinfected strictly according to this standard, the sanitary condition of tableware can reach the standard." According to professionals, in fact, many food and beverage outlets are not strictly disinfected according to relevant regulations. Especially when cleaning, many food and beverage outlets simply soak them with detergent and then put them in the disinfection cabinet. Even some operators do not turn on the power supply of the disinfection cabinet in order to save electricity. Among them, the most irregular ones are some food stalls, which are often washed in a bucket, so it is difficult to achieve disinfection standards.

demand: consumers call for assured disinfection of tableware

besides the non-compliance with hygiene and disinfection standards in restaurants, the reasons for the unsanitary tableware of public places also come from other aspects. And disease control experts said that tableware disinfection is not enough, which may lead to intestinal infectious diseases, the most common are hepatitis, dysentery, typhoid fever and so on.

Some bachelors who have been living outside for a long time have a deep feeling about tableware hygiene. Mr. Li, who works in Jida Industrial Zone, Zhuhai, said that he often eats at food stalls and found that many shops collect bowls and chopsticks in a big basin after they are used up, soak them in detergent and put them under the faucet. Some dishes and chopsticks can still see stains when they are taken to the table. Mr. Li said that if there are really reassuring sterilized tableware available, it will certainly be welcomed by consumers.

"assured tableware" refers to a kind of sterilized tableware sealed with plastic film, which includes a small rice bowl, a soup bowl, a spoon, a small saucer, a saucer and a pair of chopsticks. But this set of tableware is not provided by the restaurant and hotel operators themselves, but by a special disinfection center; After use, it is recycled by the disinfection center for unified cleaning and disinfection, and then sealed and sent to hotels and restaurants.

The reporter learned in the first tableware disinfection center just established in Zhuhai that a pair of tableware has to go through four procedures: soaking, initial cleaning, disinfection and fine washing. First, it is washed with hot water at 91 degrees Celsius, and then disinfected at 381 degrees Celsius by far infrared sterilizer. Finally, it is packaged and sealed under ultraviolet irradiation, and packed and sent to various restaurants.

Embarrassment 1: Consumers want to use it but don't want to pay for it

It is reasonable to say that the appearance of this kind of sterilized tableware is a good thing, but it is not smooth from the newly launched "assured tableware" in Zhuhai. Mr. Sun, the person in charge of the first unified disinfection center for bowls and chopsticks in Zhuhai, told the reporter that they have tried it in some restaurants for more than ten days, but at present, the daily consumption of the whole city is less than 2,111 sets, and it is conservatively estimated that there are more than 111,111 people dining in hotels and restaurants in Zhuhai every day.

At present, the biggest difficulty in promoting "assured bowls and chopsticks" is the cost. Mr. Sun told reporters that 1 yuan would be charged for using each set of tableware. According to the feedback from the restaurant, many consumers welcome this kind of tableware, and once the guests are required to pay one yuan per person, most of them still choose to use the dishes and chopsticks washed by the restaurant themselves.

Yesterday, when a reporter interviewed in a restaurant in Jida, Zhuhai, some customers were very disgusted with the extra one-yuan plastic tableware use fee. They thought that tableware disinfection was the responsibility of restaurant operators and should not be paid by consumers. Restaurant operators generally believe that their tableware has been disinfected, and they have to hire people to wash dishes. Restaurants already have this operating cost, and it is impossible to pay for the disinfected tableware sent from outside. Either the guests use the tableware in the restaurant or pay for the tableware provided by the disinfection center.

Embarrassment 2: Operators are worried and unwilling to promote

The reporter visited some restaurants in Zhuhai and found that only a handful of restaurants can put the rest assured dishes and chopsticks sent by the disinfection center outside on the table.

A restaurant operator told reporters that the main reason why he was unwilling to actively promote "assured bowls and chopsticks" was that some guests would choose to use the restaurant's own bowls and chopsticks after they were put out, but when the two were compared, the guests would question whether the bowls and chopsticks provided by the restaurant were hygienic. The restaurant owner thinks that this is asking for trouble.

In addition, the promotion of safe tableware will increase the labor cost of restaurant staff, because many guests will still use their own tableware provided by hotel restaurants, and restaurants have to clean their own tableware. In order not to confuse the two different tableware, more extra work is needed. Restaurant operators are too worried about this and simply don't put "foreign tableware" on the table.

Prospect: How far can we go is a question

Generally speaking, it is easier to popularize "assured bowls" in tourist cities than in other places, but since the implementation of "assured bowls and chopsticks" in Sanya in August this year, the daily use of "assured bowls and chopsticks" is about 2,111 sets. Some places in the mainland have promoted "safe bowls and chopsticks", but many places have also "died without a disease".

According to reports, there is a high voice to establish centralized tableware disinfection centers in various parts of Guangdong in recent years, but until now, centralized tableware disinfection companies have begun to appear in some cities in the Pearl River Delta, and these companies are all market behaviors; It is difficult for the government to force the promotion because of the use cost, operating cost and other reasons.

But it depends entirely on the market. Professionals said: "It depends entirely on the recognition of consumers, and it is still a question how far the' safe bowl chopsticks' can go."

Editor's words

Popularizing "assured tableware" and implementing centralized disinfection of tableware will undoubtedly help to eliminate people's worries about tableware hygiene in restaurants. On the other hand, "assured bowls and chopsticks" highlights that there are still problems in the current sanitary situation of the catering industry. Providing customers with "assured" tableware is the duty of the catering industry. If the catering owners guarantee their own hygiene and safety, do we still need foreign "assured tableware"?

There will always be a contradiction between the cost of "assured bowls and chopsticks" and consumers' wishes. What we want to see more is that the relevant departments can strengthen supervision so that we can use safe tableware in every restaurant. The centralized tableware disinfection center should also be included in effective supervision.