Powerful Measures: The State Council Takes Seven Measures to Strengthen the Management of ''Gutter Oil''

Recently, the General Office of the State Council issued the "Opinions on Further Strengthening the Governance of 'Gutter Oil'," adhering to a combination of prevention and control, and addressing both the symptoms and root causes, and making arrangements for building a long-term mechanism for the comprehensive governance of "gutter oil."

The "Opinions" point out that in recent years, various regions and relevant departments have continuously increased their efforts to rectify "gutter oil," achieving significant results. However, a long-term mechanism for the comprehensive governance of "gutter oil" has not yet been effectively established, and illegal activities still occur from time to time. All regions and relevant departments should take strengthening the comprehensive governance of "gutter oil" as a key task in current food safety work, focusing on strengthening source prevention and regulatory enforcement, promoting harmless treatment and resource utilization, implementing corporate responsibility, and severely cracking down on illegal activities, fundamentally eradicating the breeding ground for "gutter oil"-related crimes, and effectively ensuring that the people have no worries about food safety.

The "Opinions" focus on the comprehensive governance of "gutter oil," proposing five policy measures: First, strengthening corporate responsibility. Catering enterprises, canteens of government agencies and public institutions, slaughterhouses, and meat processing enterprises must collect and store their own kitchen waste, meat processing waste, and substandard livestock and poultry products separately, in accordance with regulations. Those with the resources should build their own harmless treatment facilities, conduct harmless treatment according to standards, and keep accurate records. Those without such facilities should entrust qualified enterprises to handle the waste, sign entrustment agreements, and establish harmless treatment ledgers. These records and vouchers must be kept for no less than two years.

Secondly, cultivate enterprises specializing in harmless treatment and resource utilization. Summarize the pilot experience of kitchen waste resource utilization, promote the cultivation of enterprises specializing in harmless treatment and resource utilization of waste commensurate with the city's scale, guide appropriately scaled operations, and allow eligible enterprises to enjoy tax incentives as stipulated.

Thirdly, improve supporting measures and technical means. Improve the methods for handling kitchen waste, meat processing waste, and substandard livestock and poultry products. The document encourages enterprises to explore installing video surveillance equipment in key areas such as catering kitchens, slaughterhouses, meat processing workshops, and harmless treatment workshops to trace the flow of waste and to research and promote practical technologies for harmless treatment and resource utilization.

Fourth, it emphasizes the implementation of supervisory and management responsibilities. It calls for increased inspections of rural areas, urban-rural fringe areas, farmers' markets, small restaurants, and small workshops, urging enterprises to establish and improve traceability systems and strictly implement the system of requiring and verifying certificates and invoices for incoming goods. It also calls for investigating and punishing illegal activities involving the online sale of counterfeit branded edible oil, implementing a reward system for whistleblowing, and mobilizing social forces for supervision.

Fifth, it stresses the severe crackdown on crimes related to "gutter oil." It further emphasizes strengthening the connection between administrative law enforcement and criminal justice, improving the mechanism for transferring and reporting suspected criminal cases, and increasing the crackdown on illegal activities involving the production and sale of "gutter oil."

The document requires all regions to strengthen the organization and leadership of "gutter oil" governance, further improve mechanisms, increase supervision, and implement responsibilities and policies at all levels. Local people's governments at or above the county level shall bear full responsibility for the disposal of kitchen waste, meat processing waste, and livestock and poultry products that fail inspection and quarantine in their respective regions.