Beijing News: Food Lighting Warning & Pet Train Travel Options
Beijing is a happening city! Don't miss a thing with our weekend roundup of the latest news.
City Reiterates Ban on “Fresh Lights”
The Beijing Municipal Market Supervision Administration recently issued the “Reminders and Warnings on the Strict Prohibition of the Use of ‘Fresh Lights’” (《关于严禁使用“生鲜灯”的提醒告诫书》) to all market and food sales operators in order to regulate the fresh food sales market and protect the rights and interests of consumers. The Reminders clearly prohibit the use in business premises of lighting that may affect customers’ ability to form a true sensory-based judgement of the quality of food items.
The so-called “fresh lights” or “fresh lamps” (生鲜灯) are really a collection of dishonest methods of lighting business areas by adjusting the color or color temperature of the light source or using other methods to create the illusion of fresh goods in order to mislead consumers when making purchases. “Fresh lights” have already been outlawed, however there are some fresh food sales establishments that apparently persist in using such illegal lighting methods.
Authorities have therefore issued the following reminders:
- Places where fresh food is sold or displayed must use white lighting apparatuses.
- It is strictly prohibited to purchase and use lighting apparatuses labeled with the words "fresh light," "red color" and "beauty" that can change the true sensory characteristics of fresh products.
- The use of colored light sources such as red, green, blue and yellow, as well as variable and adjustable light sources that can adjust color temperature and color, is strictly prohibited.
- It is strictly prohibited to add or use colored lampshades, colored plastic bags, films and cellophane to lighting fixtures and to change the color of the light source.
- It is strictly prohibited to set up large colored enclosures or background boards in the fresh product display area, such as bright red background walls in meat areas.
- It is strictly prohibited to set up colored light sources or variable and adjustable light sources in refrigeration (freezer) cabinets and display cabinets.
- Those dealing with cooked foods, pastries and cold vegetables are strongly reminded not to use light sources that affect consumers' understanding of the true sensory characteristics of food, in accordance with the above regulations.
Operators found in violation of the “Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Quality and Safety in the Market Sales of Edible Agricultural Products” (《食用农产品市场销售质量安全监督管理办法》) will be ordered to make corrections and given a warning at or above the county level. Those who refuse to make corrections will be fined not less than RMB 5,000 but not more than RMB 30,000.
Market regulation authorities have increased their inspection efforts around this issue, and the public is also advised to be aware of the environment in which they purchase their fresh goods.
Pets Can Travel Solo With This New Train Service
After a successful trial of its pet-shipping service, China Railway Express has recently initiated its “Pet Travel” (爱宠行) service, providing two modes of pet transport: Accompanied Pet Travel (携宠出行) and Solo Pet Travel (爱宠单独行).
The Pet Travel service is mainly suited for domesticated cats and dogs in good health, with the following measurements:
- Weight: ≤ 15kg
- Shoulder Height: ≤ 40cm
- Length: ≤ 52cm
The Pet Travel service is not suited for aggressive, sick, pregnant, or very young pets.
Accompanied Pet Travel (携宠出行)
This service is geared towards ticket-purchasing train passengers, who can use the Pet Transport (宠物托运) function on the Railway 12306 (铁路12306) mini program to check tickets and pet transport spaces. Trains offering pet transport services are marked with the character “宠.” Passengers can purchase tickets online and book pet transport services for the same train. The earliest booking for the next day's space is available before noon daily, while bookings for the following day's space are available from noon onward. Each passenger can transport up to two eligible pets on the same train.
Solo Pet Travel (爱宠单独行)
This service is geared towards non-ticketed passengers. Customers can reserve a spot for their pet by submitting the required pet-related information and photos through the “China Railway Express” (中铁快运) WeChat mini program two to five days before the check-in date. Each customer is limited to one pet per trip. After booking is successful, customers must bring their pet, valid identity documents, a valid animal quarantine certificate and a valid pet carrier to the China Railway Express Business Department at the departure high-speed railway station to complete the shipping procedures. After the train’s arrival at the destination, customers can pick up their pet according to a notification text message from China Railway Express.
Traveling pets are stored in the pet transport container during the entire process and are placed in the high-speed rail express compartment of the train, which is separate from the passenger space, preventing the impact of pet hair, odor and noise on the internal environment of the train.
To improve the quality of service, China Railway Express has upgraded the pet transport containers. In addition to built-in air circulation, oxygen content, temperature and humidity monitoring, noise reduction and deodorization functions, it has added an intelligent sensor for adding water, night vision video monitoring, remote electric ventilation and other functions.
Staff will keep track of the status of pets through the monitoring system of the pet transport box, and will regularly patrol every couple of hours to ensure the well-being of the pets. After the transportation of each pet is completed, the staff will promptly clean and disinfect the pet transport box and high-speed rail express cabinet.
Currently, the Pet Transport service has been initiated in more than 120 high-speed railway stations and on more than 200 high-speed railway trains marked with the word “宠.” The network covers major cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Chongqing, Xi'an and Wuhan.
Both the Railway 12306 and the China Railway Express mini programs display options for registration using foreign passports, however users are advised to double-check their ability to utilize the pet transport services well in advance of their trip and to have a backup plan for their pets if necessary.
READ: Step-By-Step Guide To Getting Your Individual Income Tax Return
Images: Unsplash
