Italian man runs chili business in China, promotes Chinese food culture

10:48, December 27, 2019

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  Schools advised to run self-canteens for food safety

  Liu Guoxiong, the headmaster of The Affiliated High School to UIBE, dines with students at the canteen, on April 1, 2019. (Photo: China Daily)Primary and middle schools, as well as kindergartens, have been advised to run canteens themselves rather than contracting with other private companies or food suppliers, according to a guideline released on Monday.The guideline issued by the State Administration for Market Regulation, the Ministry of Education, the National Health Commission and the Ministry of Public Security, targets food safety in schools.Schools having conditions should provide meals to students themselves since some contractors might ignore food safety in pursuit of economic interests, the guideline said.In practice, problems existed, such as the lack of accountability and the neglect of food safety management, and that caused students to fall sick because of unsafe food, the guideline pointed out.Grocery stores and supermarkets should be banned in non-boarding schools to help children and teenagers adopt a healthy diet and stop relying on snacks. Those stores that already exist should be withdrawn.Boarding schools that need to set up grocery stores or supermarkets should obtain permission from authority according to the law. In principle, only water, milk, and food such as prepackaged bread should be sold in these shops.Schools are regulated not to rent their own properties near the school to non-licensed businesses focusing on food production. In addition, enhanced efforts will be carried out against food-related crimes.With regard to the current regulation which requires school principals across China to dine with their students at school canteens, the guideline said they should evaluate the meals objectively and take notes of the hygiene in the dining areas and the work of staff, to discover existing issues and potential risks concerning food security and rectify them as soon as possible.

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  In a 24/7 food culture, periodic fasting gains followers

  Melissa Breaux Bankston, a CrossFit athletic trainer at CrossFit Algiers in New Orleans, works out at the gym Monday, Dec. 23, 2019. (Photo: AP)On low-carb diets, meat and cheese are OK.On low-fat diets, fruit and oatmeal are fine.With the latest diet trend, no foods at all are allowed for long stretches of time.A diet that forbids eating for hours on end might seem doomed in a culture where food is constantly available, but apps and Facebook groups are popping up for people practicing “intermittent fasting.”Bri Wyatt, a 32-year-old Tennessee resident, tried it this summer.“At first I was like, there’s no way,” she said.But after reading more about it, she thought it might not be that hard. She started by skipping breakfast and night-time snacks and later moved on to a 60-day challenge of fasting every other day.Melissa Breaux Bankston, a Crossfit instructor in New Orleans, Louisiana, also tried intermittent fasting as a way to curb her snacking. “I wanted to limit the amount of time that I was eating,” she said.Studies on the potential health benefits of intermittent fasting are still limited, including for its effectiveness with weight loss. But heading into the new year, you may be wondering whether it could help you get in better shape.WHEN, NOT WHATLike other diets, intermittent fasting helps you lose weight by setting boundaries around food. But instead of limiting what you eat, it restricts when you eat.“It’s really another way of fooling your body into eating less calories,” said Krista Varady, who studies intermittent fasting at the University of Illinois at Chicago.Proponents say intermittent fasting helps with weight loss in other ways. For instance, they say it forces your body to start burning its own fat for fuel after depleting the energy it normally gets from food. But any effects would depend on the specific approach you take, and Varady said there isn’t strong evidence yet that intermittent fasting has any unique effects compared with other diets.R...

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  Optimizing business environment incentivizes Chinese entrepreneurship

  Cheng said Japan is a frequent destination for Chinese travelers. (Photo: CGTN)Female entrepreneurs make up the majority in the travel sector. Cheng told CGTN that 60 percent of her peers are female. "If you count the co-founders there will be more female entrepreneurs," she added.Comparison of different business environmentAfter completing her education at top universities in China, Europe and the U.S., the idea of starting a business grew for five years before Cheng made it a reality."I think education is really the way to change views and perspectives," said Cheng. For the younger Chinese generations, girls receive similar or even higher education than the boys, she said.She then commented that for female professionals as a whole, China has the most balanced environment. She added that China "does a very good job" at encouraging girls to peruse their personal happiness, career and goal, and "applauding" entrepreneurs.Market demandLushu provides software as a service (SAAS) to tailor-make journeys. SAAS belongs to the field of cloud computing, which offers software licensing on a subscription basis and a software delivery model.Over the past year, China has made an effort to optimize its market-oriented, law-based business environment. In the first three quarters of 2019 alone, small and micro enterprises in the country have seen a total of 182.7 billion yuan (26 billion U.S. dollars) in inclusive tax reduction.The encouraging business environment has inspired entrepreneurs such as Cheng Xiaoyu, founder of Lushu Technology.Lushu makes journey plans at the request of institutions such as travel agencies, education groups and individual companies.Chinese tourists made 119.90 million trips overseas in the first three quarters of 2019. They are becoming increasingly independent and demanding of more unique and authentic travel experiences. Cheng estimated that tailor-made journeys now count for 15 percent of the overall market, ...