Lawmakers say asking customers to pay for leftovers will be difficult

Chinese lawmakers suggested that the country's top legislature modify an article that restaurants can ask customers who waste too much food to pay a charge based on the amount of their leftovers to prevent food waste.

The article, which was deliberated among legislators on Thursday, is written into a draft law on preventing food waste and was submitted to the ongoing bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of National People's Congress for the first review on Tuesday.

Hailing the law, Liu Zhengkui, a member of the NPC's Financial and Economic Affairs Committee, expressed his support for the article, saying it will be difficult to regulate in practice and may easily create disputes between restaurants and consumers.

"Catering service providers can be charged for leftovers, and the fees can be collected in line with different amounts of leftovers," he said. "In this way, restaurants will be urged to remind consumers not to order too much food, instead of asking restaurants to collect fees from consumers directly."

Such a way of curbing food waste by charging for leftovers may also be adopted in school canteens, he added.

On the other hand, Zheng Shuna, a member of the NPC Standing Committee, agreed. She said the current draft does not make it clear how much food ordered by consumers can be identified as waste and how much money restaurants can charge for leftovers from consumers, "which will be impractical."

In her view, the intention is good, "as we have also to given a warning that not to order too much food to consumers while regulating catering service providers," she said.

"But this article, I think, still needs to be modified, as how to make it work effectively should be taken more into consideration," she added.

The 32-article draft came after Chinese authorities emphasized the need to stop wasting food and promoting frugality. It is of importance in improving a healthy, rational and green lifestyle and consumption, and it is also essential to accelerating the building of a resource-conserving and environmentally friendly society.

In general, a draft will become a law after being reviewed by the top legislature for three times.