Steps to streamline dairy industry

Taking advantage of the government's crackdown on some foreign infant formula makers for their business malpractices, a few domestic dairy companies have increased the prices of their products by 5 to 13 percent, says an article on gmw.cn. Excerpts:

The demand for infant formula has grown in recent years, but consumers still find it difficult to get a satisfactory product. Domestic dairy companies lost people's trust after melamine-contaminated milk powder claimed the lives of six infants and left tens of thousands of children ill in 2008. The scandal forced Sanlu Group, then the largest producer of dairy products in China, into bankruptcy. The food scandals that followed dealt further blows to domestic dairy companies.

But after the recent safety scandals involving foreign companies' products, some consumers have been forced to buy domestic products. Domestic companies enjoy an advantage over foreign counterparts in terms of price because their products cost less. And now that some consumers have started buying their products, domestic dairy companies like Mengniu, one of China's largest dairy product makers, are raising prices to make more profits. Of course, production costs have increased in recent years, but the main reason domestic companies are raising prices is consumers' renewed interest in their products.

Although the cost of sourcing milk increased by 7 percent in July compared with June, the average increase in materials' prices was less than 5 percent. So some experts say it is unfair for some companies to raise prices of their products by up 13 percent. The dairy industry is also seeing more mergers and acquisitions, both among domestic and foreign brands, raising fears that big companies will indulge in more monopoly practices.

Since even a slight change in infant formula price affects a large percentage of China's population today, the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top planning body, has cracked down on alleged price fixing and anti-competition practices of some companies to prevent unreasonable increase in prices and unfair competition.

Emphasis on English misplaced

From December, colleges will not have cloze tests for English in a bid to change the existing sentence translation and paragraph translation system. But the crucial question is: How to reform the English syllabus in colleges and lessen students' obsession with English? says an article in Guangzhou Daily. Excerpts:

A good knowledge of English is certainly important in today's world because it is the most widely used language across the globe. But the emphasis on learning the English language seems to be misplaced.

Although education departments and universities have adopted certain measures against cheating in college English tests, the craze for excelling in the language prompts many a student to adopt ingenious methods of cheating.

Students worship English because "mastery" of the language is considered a must for candidates hunting for jobs in today's globalized world. In fact, high scores in English improve the prospects of a candidate in bagging a job. The function of English as a tool of communication has been replaced by its utilitarian use.

To a certain extent, the importance students attach to the study of the English language is a reflection of society's need for a tool of communication in the wider world. But the fact remains that college English tests have turned students into "machines", which is certainly not the original purpose of studying the English language. To lessen students' obsession with English, education authorities have to do more than just reforming the college English test format. Universities have to take strict measures to improve the evaluation system of college English tests. More importantly, relevant departments should take measures to make the study of the English language more rational and practical.

(China Daily 08/21/2013 page9)