A famous Beijing restaurant is now launching a campaign among its 69 branches countrywide, advocating customers to order just a sufficient amount of dishes.

"Welcome to our restaurant, but don't order too much." Such slogans can be seen at eye-catching places in the restaurant.

Waiters at the restaurant will also give special gifts to those eat all the food they have ordered.

The restaurant is Quanjude, the most famous roasted duck restaurant in Beijing with a history of over 100 years. Everyday the restaurant attracts hundreds of distinguished guests from all over the world, including many kings, presidents and prime ministers.

"We want to do something to change the current bad habit of showing one's status and wealth by devouring food," said Xing Ying, deputy general manager of Quanjude.

According to the latest official figures, as many as 1,600 tons of leftover food is dumped everyday in Beijing, and in Shanghai, the figure is 1,200 tons daily.

Some sociologists believe that in China, at least 4 billion U.S. dollars and another several million tons of grains are wasted in ordering excessive dishes in restaurants.

"Our efforts have gained more and more support from all sides," said He Ping, assistant general manager of Quanjude's Shanghai branch, "we now grant the special 'no waste' award to a dozen groups of customers a day."

"Some other restaurants have decided to follow us," He added.

However, for Quanjude and its followers, their target of establishing an anti-waste tendency is still a long way to go.

Restaurant customers in China, especially those who want to treat guests or whose have the privilege to spend public money in slap-up restaurants, generally have such notions in mind that their face or prestige depends upon how much money they spend on dishes.

"If all the dishes are eaten, I will feel a loss of face," said Zhang who is working for a foreign company and actually doesn’t want to waste money on superfluous dishes.

In Chinese neighborhoods, news of one person spending 1,000 U.S. dollars on just one meal can be seen or heard very often, although generally it is still a poor country.

Xinhua released a news story 14 years ago, saying that large amounts of food were being wasted everyday in the cafeterias of various work units of Beijing. However, according to the latest survey, things are getting even worse today.

"We will have to fight a tough war against the bad habit of wasting money and food. We will have to learn from other nations in the world so as to improve ourselves," said Yan Yu, deputy secretary-general of the China Cuisine Association.

"Anyway, a great-hearted nation will always grow by making progress in discarding bad habits and absorbing good ones from others," he added.

(Xinhua News Agency 07/31/2001)