It's been more than ten days since the college started. wangxin, a junior from Beihang University in the countryside, told reporters that he had spent more than 31 yuan on meals than last semester. After the school started, he ate in the school cafeteria, ordered a meat dish, a green vegetable and rice like last semester, and finally swiped his card to show "5 yuan Money", which was more expensive than last semester in 1.5 yuan. "In the past, a vegetarian meal in the canteen was 3.5 yuan, but now a vegetarian meal has risen to 2 yuan." Wangxin said.
Indeed, since the beginning of the new semester, some college students have found that the price of meals in school canteens has risen quietly. Many college students have set the price of canteen food online, and some students say that they can hardly afford it.
Many universities in Beijing explained that the price increase of canteens was due to the increase of pork and other food prices. In July, the price of food products increased by 15.4% year-on-year, and the real cost pressure will certainly be transmitted to university canteens.
On August 27th, the Ministry of Education issued the Emergency Notice on Further Improving the Work of Students' Dining Rooms in Colleges and Secondary Vocational Schools in Response to the Rising of Non-staple Food Prices, which put forward clear requirements for implementing the spirit of the State Council's Notice and stabilizing the food prices in students' canteens.
However, individual colleges and universities are not firm enough and the measures are not appropriate enough. To this end, on September 6th, the Ministry of Education issued the Circular on the Price Increase of Dining Rooms in Individual Schools, requiring local education administrative departments and schools to attach great importance to it.
The price of food in canteens has changed dramatically
The reporter learned that the prices of meat, vegetables, noodles, steamed buns, steamed buns, pancakes, fried dough sticks and other kinds of food in many university canteens in Beijing have all increased, and the floating range is between 1.1 yuan and 1 yuan. As wangxin's account shows, due to the rising price of food, the cost of food is about 111 yuan more per month. Some students recount the "three sins" of university canteens: high price, few varieties, and failure to publicize the price increase. In this case, many college students reacted strongly. There were even many posts on the unnamed BBS in Peking University discussing the price increase of canteens, and some students rode their bikes to the relatively cheap Tsinghua University canteen to eat because of the price increase of school canteens.
"In the canteen, even the big cakes have gone up by a hair, especially the rice. Although there is no price increase, the quantity has obviously decreased." The prices of meals in canteens of major universities have generally increased. Many students said that it was hard to accept when they first came to school. These students complained that the price of school vegetables had risen too much. "A tofu is 1 yuan, just two small spoons! Meat is even more expensive, three or four pieces of barbecued pork will cost 2 yuan, and a chicken steak will cost 6 yuan and 51 cents. "Scrambled eggs with tomatoes are already 2 yuan each. Generally, the fried meat with vegetables is above 3 yuan, but there is no meat at all in 2 yuan." Some students' accounts are even more detailed: "The price of vegetables in our school canteen has gone up very far, with vegetables rising by 61%, meat cooking by 25% and meat by 41%. What shall we do? " However, some students expressed their understanding, "Now, prices outside are rising, and it is also right for prices in schools to rise, and people have to eat."
"The increase in food prices in the canteen has a great impact on me." Xiao Zhao of Agricultural University said that his daily living expenses need to be solved by himself. "It is not easy to make money now. The money I spend on eating is still relatively small. The daily cost is nearly one yuan more than before. After one month, the cost of eating is nearly 31 yuan more than before." There are also some "optimists" who have a black humor. Xiao Wang, a junior in Peking University, quipped: "The high price of school vegetables is really beneficial to those who have ambitions to lose weight, and they can better implement their weight loss goals in the future! Eat once every two days, and the bag will be thin! " Some students think that they don't have to go to the canteen to eat, but they can solve it in cheap and delicious restaurants and fast food restaurants around the school. Some students even said that they could eat instant noodles or "cook a small stove" in their dormitory. Xiao Zhao of Agricultural University said: "The poor students are the first to be affected by the price increase. At first, I just didn't have the money to pay the tuition, so I can save my living expenses by tightening my belt. Now the price has risen so much that it seems that poor students can only eat steamed buns or instant noodles every meal! "
Indeed, the sharp increase in the price of university canteens has been criticized, mainly because ordinary college students can't eat without university canteens. College students themselves are a group lacking income sources. Any price change of university canteens actually involves a minimum living security problem, which is particularly obvious in front of a large number of poor students.
Beijing university canteens have been increasing in price
For these reasons, most university canteens have the same explanation. Due to rising prices, the prices of various raw materials have also risen. If the prices are not adjusted, they will not be able to operate normally. Zhao Ran, the joint purchasing center of universities in Beijing, said that due to the large increase in the price of grain in the whole market, although many universities in Beijing will implement joint purchasing, the cost will be appropriately reduced, but joint purchasing cannot be divorced from the reality of rising prices in the market. According to the person in charge of Peking University Catering Center, since May this year, the operation of the catering center has been under great pressure due to the rapid rise in the prices of various raw materials. In order to stabilize students' mood, the school canteen has been trying its best to control the price of vegetables, and is currently operating at a discount.
indeed, in the first half of this year, the general level of consumer prices in China rose by 3.5%, and one of the main drivers was the rise in food prices, especially the price of meat and poultry and their products. According to the report on the implementation of the national economic and social development plan this year, food prices rose by 8.6% in the first seven months of this year. A university teacher said: "It is the difficult groups who are most sensitive to price fluctuations. The average daily increase in food expenses by 1 yuan also means that the number of meals in the rice bowls of some poor students is reduced, and the intake of nutrition is reduced ... "
Should prices be transparent?
The rising operating cost of university canteens is of course an unavoidable reality. The problem is that the rising cost may not necessarily lead to high-priced dishes paid by students. Relevant experts believe that the relevant departments should do something on this issue and adjust the relevant links of price increase.
Zhao Ran, Beijing University Joint Purchasing Center, said: "Judging from the current situation, it is against the market rules to force university canteens not to raise prices. We can neither force them to close down at a loss, nor force college students to eat instant noodles or' go on a diet to lose weight'. On this issue, we should' get less' from college canteens and' give more' to college students. Doing this addition and subtraction well is related to the quality of life of college students and whether they can study with peace of mind. University canteens should be more public welfare than economy, and the price level of meals should have a baseline and a controllable range. "
He believes that, first of all, schools can take measures such as implementing rent-free fees for student canteens and subsidizing water, electricity and fuel fees to ensure stable food prices in university canteens, and reduce the operating costs of canteens to offset the pressure of material costs. For example, in the face of rising prices of raw materials, Tsinghua University has reduced the cost of canteens by finding stable low-cost supply channels and scientific and technological reforms, and at the same time established a number of stable food supply bases and long-term cooperative relations to make prices relatively stable. Secondly, colleges and universities should also provide special subsidies for students with financial difficulties in time to reduce the pressure of price increases on students, so as to avoid students' "unable to open the pot". At the same time, the school should actively attract students to participate in the supervision and management of student canteens, and the price department should pay close attention to it, and draw up procedures such as hearings to increase the transparency of canteen cost accounting. In the case of having to increase, students and consumers should have equal right to know and participate, and the increase cannot be decided at will by the canteen operators.
According to Xinhua News Agency, more than 611,111 students from poor families in Guangxi universities, higher vocational schools and secondary vocational schools will receive temporary living allowances from the central government in order to alleviate the adverse impact of rising prices of pork and other things on their studies. The central government has arranged a special fund of 8.44 million yuan for Guangxi this time. The temporary living allowance period is two months, and the standard is 7 yuan per person per month.