Dairy products crackdown

    BEIJING, March 28 (Xinhuanet) -- At least 20 percent of domestic(国内的) companies will be kicked out of the dairy market at the end of this month following the latest inspection¹ by the central government of China's fresh milk and infant formula producers, official sources revealed.
    To help Chinese companies win back a bigger share of the domestic market, the General Administration of Quality Supervision², Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) ordered its local branches to re-inspect dairy enterprises that had already obtained production licenses⁴. The deadline to do so is March 31.
    According to data released in late February by four provinces and an autonmous region that had completed the re-inspection - Fujian, Guangdong, Shaanxi, Sichuan and Ningxia - all but Sichuan saw 30 percent of its dairy companies fail. Those companies will have their licenses revoked⁵ by the government.
    In Sichuan, less than 20 percent of dairy enterprises failed.
    Mu Jingjun, secretary-general of the China Dairy Industry Association（联想）, said it is now time to clarify the situation and air the facts.
    "Consumers have been confused by irresponsible statements and reporting. There are problems with ongoing⁶ speculation⁷ that harms the whole industry and the national interest," Mu was quoted by China Radio International as saying.
    The Dairy Association of China under the Ministry⁸ of Agriculture forecast that more than 20 percent of the country's dairy companies, accounting⁹ for about 10 percent of the market, will have their licenses revoked when the re-inspection finishes this month.
    The obligation for every company engaged in dairy production in China to re-apply for licenses was imposed in November by AQSIQ, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the National Development and Reform Commission.
    "Local quality supervision departments, especially those in major dairy producing areas, should speed up the inspection. Dairy producers who failed to pass the quality inspections¹⁰ will be forced to shut down," Li Yuanping, an AQSIQ spokesman, told China Radio International recently.
    According to the order, dairy companies must have equipment that can test for 64 additives¹¹, including melamine. The equipment will cost the companies 3 million yuan (456,000 U.S. dollars) to 4 million yuan each.
    "Only big companies with annual revenues exceeding 80 million yuan and more than 20 tons of daily output can afford to upgrade their equipment," said Jiang Xin, an analyst¹² from China Jianyin Investment Securities.
    The policy will streamline¹³ the production of normal temperature fresh milk but not affect production of powdered milk and pasteurized milk to any great extent. These latter products already have higher standards of quality control that include sourcing the milk to a particular cow and testing equipment, she added.
    It will also have a greater influence on small companies because the big ones already have mature testing methods. Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co Ltd, one of China's biggest dairy products manufacturers, and Nestle China, which has three production centers in Shandong province, said they do not need to invest more in testing machines. The world's largest dairy processing company, New Zealand Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd, said because it only has cow farms in China, not factories, it does not need to apply for the new manufacturing license³.
    China has more than 800 dairy companies at present. About one third of them had finished the application process by Feb 24, according to AQSIQ. The application deadline was postponed¹⁴ to the end of March, instead of March 1, as the original order in last November required.
    Jiang said big companies such as Yili and its major competitor, Inner Mongolia Mengniu Dairy (Group) Co Ltd, have advantages in terms of sales networks that will enable them to take over the 10 percent market share held by small companies by the end of this month.
    "The new license application is definitely good news for China's dairy industry, which has witnessed quality scandals in recent years," Jiang said. "It's a good time to rebuild a healthy image."China's dairy industry is still in its infancy¹⁵ in comparison with Europe. Since 1997, the industry has been increasing annually¹⁶ at a rate of 25 percent. Its rapid development saw a handful of small businesses bring discredit¹⁷ to the industry. Thanks to the re-inspection regime, these companies will be eliminated, industry experts said.(本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑)

1 inspection   

n.检查，审查，检阅

参考例句：

• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。
• The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。

2 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

3 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

4 licenses   

n.执照( license的名词复数 )v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Drivers have ten days' grace to renew their licenses. 驾驶员更换执照有10天的宽限期。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Jewish firms couldn't get import or export licenses or raw materials. 犹太人的企业得不到进出口许可证或原料。 来自辞典例句

5 revoked   

adj.[法]取消的v.撤销，取消，废除( revoke的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It may be revoked if the check is later dishonoured. 以后如支票被拒绝支付，结算可以撤销。 来自辞典例句
• A will is revoked expressly. 遗嘱可以通过明示推翻。 来自辞典例句

6 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

7 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

8 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

9 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

10 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 additives   

n.添加剂( additive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• chemical additives in petrol 汽油中的化学添加剂
• It'says on the packet that these crisps contain no additives. 包装上说这些炸薯片不含添加剂。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

13 streamline   

vt.使成流线型；使简化；使现代化

参考例句：

• We must streamline our methods.我们必须简化方法。
• Any liquid or gas passing it will have streamline flow.任何通过它的液体或气体将呈流线型的流动。

14 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

15 infancy   

n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期

参考例句：

• He came to England in his infancy.他幼年时期来到英国。
• Their research is only in its infancy.他们的研究处于初级阶段。

16 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

17 discredit   

vt.使不可置信；n.丧失信义；不信，怀疑

参考例句：

• Their behaviour has bought discredit on English football.他们的行为败坏了英国足球运动的声誉。
• They no longer try to discredit the technology itself.他们不再试图怀疑这种技术本身。