Twenty years of cold chain

Wenchuan County, the epicenter of the earthquake, is the largest vegetable-producing county in the prefecture, a pollution-free vegetable base in the province, and a green food production base approved by the Ministry of Agriculture. 40% of the income of farmers in the county comes from vegetables.

The first batch of vegetables from Wenchuan began to hit the market in May. The earthquake disrupted short-distance transportation between Wenchuan and Chengdu, increasing the distance for vegetables from over 140 kilometers to over 800 kilometers. The transportation cost, which was three cents per kilogram, directly increased to more than two cents, accounting for half of the vegetable price.

In the process of post-disaster reconstruction in the devastated disaster area, we must not only have confidence in the new homeland, but also give our compatriots confidence in the current economic security.

Thus, a nationwide "vegetable transportation and sales relay" was launched in full swing!

In addition to the provinces that provided counterpart assistance, many provinces across the country are actively taking measures, including fuel subsidies and transportation subsidies, to extend the shelf life of vegetables and alleviate the pressure of intensive transportation. They have also decisively established cold storage and assembly warehouses in the disaster area and improved the quality of vegetables through preliminary processing to help Wenchuan vegetables be transported and sold throughout the country.

In various places, measures such as waiving entry fees for vegetables from disaster areas and providing free stalls specifically for selling vegetables from Wenchuan have emerged. At the same time, more and more cold chain companies have joined the effort. The cooperation between companies and the government, as well as the coordination among companies, has not only solved the immediate crisis but also given vegetable farmers more confidence to plant vegetables for the next season and the following year, ensuring their livelihoods.

The initial exploration of emergency cold chain logistics has thus gained real attention, prompting discussions on how cold chain logistics should respond to environments where higher quality is required and safety conditions are lacking during emergencies. Examples include the large quantities of plasma needed in the early stages of earthquake relief, and the large quantities of serum and vaccines required during public health emergencies such as avian influenza. These are typically small-batch, frequent shipments. Emergency transport of food, on the other hand, often involves large-batch, frequent shipments. This represents another niche area of ​​cold chain logistics lacking suitable platforms and equipment.

Regardless, the momentum of cold chain logistics across the country is becoming increasingly strong. Not long ago, the first China Cold Chain Summit Forum was held, which was the first forum in the industry to begin with "China Cold Chain".

Looking back over the years, the chaos and predicament remained unresolved, and we stared blankly at the snow in front of our door and the frost on our roof. Finally, we have ushered in a higher-level industry seminar, which has extraordinary significance for industry integration, technology application, and system construction.

This first summit, unsurprisingly, focused on "food safety technology," the essence of which is "problems at the dinner table." Over the years, we have witnessed far too many shocking food problems, and the application of testing and assurance technologies should have long been the subject of nationwide discussions.

The reconstruction of the disaster area has just begun, and the Olympic Games are just around the corner.

It is estimated that during the Olympics, major companies will provide catering services and food supplies for more than 300,000 delegations, staff, media personnel, and more than 10 million spectators from various countries, with a total supply of nearly 10,000 tons.

Tongxing made a final mobilization, joining forces with 428 food supply companies across the country to embark on the journey to supply the Olympics. This is the Olympic journey of the food industry.

This nationwide carnival and grand event had no time for companies like Tongxing, which supplied the Olympics, to watch the exciting Olympic games. They had only one thing on their minds: listening to the reports from the Olympic working group and reviewing the various data sheets of the food supplied to the Olympics.

For them, zero is everything: zero pollution, zero complaints, zero accidents. Reaching zero on all food safety indicators is the ultimate satisfaction. This is a heavy burden on everyone's mind, one that will never be lifted until the closing ceremony of the Olympics.

But unexpectedly, at this moment, Hu Shutong received a call from Jiang Zhipeng.

He didn't answer the phone immediately, but stared blankly at the screen, a sense of foreboding creeping over him. He and Jiang Zhipeng had fallen out over the milk source issue, and hadn't been in contact since the end of last year. Tongxing and Qingyuan had also severed all ties; Qingyuan had even removed its dedicated shelf space from Tongxing without a word.

"Old Hu, something seems off. Did you see the news from the beginning of the month?"

"Let's not talk about right or wrong now, do you or don't you?"

"What do I have?"

Melamine!

"What are you talking about?"

"Are you blind or hiding?!" Hu Shutong roared, furious. "The deliberate addition of melamine to the raw milk is the main cause of the problematic milk powder, Jiang Zhipeng, this is the official conclusion! Some companies have done a good job with public relations and temporarily suppressed the matter, but this matter cannot be covered up! I don't know how much you've leaked, I only know that this is utterly heinous!"

As he spoke, Hu Shutong almost roared! Regardless of how Jiang Zhipeng felt, even Hu Shutong was filled with lingering fear. This was only a small-scale operation with a hundred samples. If a large number of problematic milk powders were to flow into the market and enter thousands of households, the consequences would be unimaginable!

"Jiang Zhipeng, it's adulterated with melamine! Don't you know that?! If you don't thoroughly investigate your dairy farmers and conduct a full traceability review, you're going to get shot!"

Melamine, also known as "protein concentrate," is used to impersonate milk protein. In reality, it has extremely low toxicity and cannot be metabolized in the human body. It will eventually be excreted in urine, but all of this is on the premise that the urinary system of an adult is mature.

For infants and young children whose systems are still very fragile, melamine can form salt crystals in the kidneys, eventually leading to kidney stones!

The company operates with extensive and unrestrained methods, seeing only a bright future ahead. Instead of building its own ranches, it entrusts the lifeline of its business to thousands of dairy farmers. Once one person discovers the exorbitant profits, the news spreads to millions. The vast majority of dairy farmers are completely unaware of the potential dangers; they only know that this is a quick way to recoup their investment in dairy cows.

Jiang Zhipeng was terrified, his voice trembling, "Old Hu, I really don't know if I have it or not, what should I do?"

"You have to investigate, even if you don't dare! There must be people manufacturing and selling melamine to dairy farmers. If you don't understand this, you're finished! If there are any shady dealings, none of your dairy companies will escape!"

Hu Shutong hung up the phone. What was the point of dwelling on the past now? This matter was clearly abnormal; the first case could be traced back to March, when a dairy company even sued a consumer. He only hoped that the "kidney stone babies" were isolated incidents, keeping the situation under control.

He could never have imagined how terrible things would eventually become!

Food safety issues are like flies and dogs scrambling for resources, recklessly piling things up everywhere.

At this moment, its ultimate explosion will arrive!

……

I've loved cold chain logistics for twenty years.