Research On The Problems And Countermeasures Of Social Co-governance Of Food Safety In Shifang City

Food safety is major public health issue that has a vital impact on economic and social development.In recent years,food safety problems have been rising in China and has aroused great public concern and anxiety.These food safety incidents have adversely affected not only public health,but also the stability of the country and society.The causation of food safety problems is complex,involving many contradictions and interests.It is difficult to achieve a desired goal by relying solely on government forces and managing food safety through traditional administrative means.Ideally,the governance of food safety should involve the effort of the entire society.As such,China has put forward the working concept of social co-governance of food safety and a series of reforms have been introduced to guide various interest groups,including the government and its departments,production and business units,social media,the public,etc.,to conduct food safety governance activities and ensure the food safety for the entire society.Based on the theory of social co-governance and previous experience,this thesis used literature research,field investigation,and systematic analysis to study the practical meaning of social co-governance of food safety using Shifang City as a case study and discussed food safety governance models and systems worldwide.By systematically reviewing Shifang City's policy documents,comparing government financial investment data,summarizing the results of market supervision and inspection,the practice of social co-governance of food safety in Shifang City was studied.It was found that the social co-governance of food safety in Shifang City has achieved some promising results – an early shape of food safety co-governance has been formed and the food safety work has been maintained in a good state.There have been no major food safety incidents for many years.However,there are also many limitations and hurdles.For example,there is a lack of effective communication methods between the public and governmental agencies.The government's financial investment in food safety and social co-governance is low,and the quality of social co-governance supervision teams needs to be improved.In response to the above problems,this thesis proposed solutions from four aspects: government support,corporate self-discipline,public participation,and information disclosure.More specifically,the strategies include improving government supervision system and capabilities,clarifying corporate social responsibilities,optimizing information sharing mechanisms,and enhancing public awareness etc.The current study focused on the concept of social co-governance of food safety in Shifang City,and the results may serve as the development path for the social co-governance of food safety in Shifang City.The thesis is divided into 5 chapters.Chapter 1 is an introduction.It provides the research background and significance of the current study.It reviews the current situation of food safety co-governance from foreign,domestic,and local(Shifang)levels,and briefly explains the main content and research methods of this study.Chapter2 mainly discusses the core concepts and theoretical basis of food safety social co-governance,elaborates the connotation of food safety,food safety governance,social co-governance,food safety social co-governance,and the theoretical basis of public governance and collaborative governance.The chapter also explores the possible methods for the market and the public to participate in food safety governance.Chapter3 introduces the current situation,specific methods used,and achievements of food safety social co-governance in Shifang City.Chapter 4 summarizes the current situation of food safety social co-governance in Shifang City,focusing on the insufficient leading role of the government,insufficient information disclosure,lax management of enterprise entities,and insufficient public participation to explain the problems of food safety social co-governance in Shifang City and their reasons.Based on the advanced experience from other countries,Chapter 5 proposes optimization strategies for different subjects,to promote the development of Shifang City's implementation of food safety social co-governance.