The company involved in "Rat Head Duck Neck" has been exposed! Claiming to have a scale comparable to Haidilao University | Canteen | Enterprise
On the 17th, the matter of "rat head duck neck" that attracted public attention was finally settled, and the identity of the relevant companies involved remains an unsolved mystery.
On the 19th, media confirmed through cross verification from relevant departments of the Education Department of Jiangxi Province and logistics management departments of multiple universities in Jiangxi Province that the supplier of the cafeteria in question is Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd. Currently, the school in question, Jiangxi Vocational and Technical College of Industry, has terminated its contract with the company.
Is the winning supplier of the cafeteria involved Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd? If so, what are the next corrective measures? On the afternoon of the 19th, China News Service called Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd. Tianyancha and its parent company Shenzhen Zhongkuai Catering Group Co., Ltd. for their official website contact information, but as of the time of publication, no one answered.
Multiple interviews confirmed that the involved enterprise is "Jiangxi Zhongkuai"
According to the public bidding information of Jiangxi Vocational and Technical College of Industry, the winning suppliers for the Yaohu Campus cafeteria in this matter are Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd. and Jiangxi Jinmeng Catering Management Co., Ltd. The two companies operate the first and second canteens of the involved campuses respectively.
On the 19th, a cadre who previously worked in the Logistics and Industry Office of the Jiangxi Provincial Department of Education and is still working in a subordinate institution of the Jiangxi Provincial Department of Education told reporters that the catering enterprise involved in the "61" food safety incident at Jiangxi Industrial Vocational and Technical College was Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd. "Now the school has terminated their contract with them."
In addition, on the 19th, the reporter confirmed with the logistics management departments of multiple canteens, which are also operated by Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd., that although there was a student eating a rat's head incident in the canteens operated by Jiangxi Zhongkuai, these universities all stated that according to the contract agreement, the canteens are still operated by Jiangxi Zhongkuai, and the schools attach great importance to the safety of canteen catering and have increased inspection efforts.
According to public information, the winning bidder for the operating lease project of Xingxing Restaurant at Jiangxi University of Chinese and Western Medicine in 2022 is Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd.
On the 19th, the reporter called the Logistics Support Department of Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and the staff clearly stated that there were no food safety issues in the cafeteria operated by Jiangxi Zhongkuai. The Provincial Department of Education and the Food Safety Management Department have been inspecting for the past two weeks, and "the contract has legal effect. If there are no issues, we will not terminate the contract with Zhongkuai."
As for the "rat head duck neck" incident, the other party stated that it happened at another point in Zhongkuai. "If he doesn't manage it well, it doesn't mean we don't manage it well here."
"To be honest, if there is a problem with the student cafeteria, the school is the most nervous, and we do not want the safety and health of students to be affected." The staff said that the school's management of the cafeteria is "very strict".
According to public information, the winning bidder for the fourth cafeteria operation project of Jiangxi Agricultural University is also Jiangxi Zhongkuai Logistics Service Co., Ltd.
On the 19th, a reporter called the Catering Service Center of the Logistics Service Department of Jiangxi Agricultural University, and the staff confirmed that the fourth canteen is currently operated by Jiangxi Zhongkuai. "The school has a accompanying meal system, and counselors and teachers will dine with students in the student canteen. The school has also increased its inspection efforts."
More than 700 parent company or operating university cafeteria projects
Self proclaimed scale approaching Hai Di Lao
The reporter learned that Jiangxi Zhongkuai, which involves "rat head duck neck", is an enterprise invested by Shenzhen Zhongkuai Catering Group Co., Ltd. Public information shows that Zhongkuai Catering Group has directly invested in at least 24 local "Zhongkuai Catering" enterprises in multiple provinces and cities across the country, including Shanghai, Anhui, Shaanxi, Henan, and other places.
According to the company's official website, Zhongkuai Catering Group was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Shenzhen. It is a professional group catering comprehensive service provider that integrates catering services for universities, middle schools, hospitals, enterprises, institutions, and office buildings. The university group meal segment is the most representative brand with the largest number of stores.
In fact, Shenzhen Zhongkuai Catering Group has a close relationship with Jiangxi. It was mentioned in the group's WeChat official account that the founder Li Pingjin, a native of Lushan, Jiangxi Province, started his business in the canteen of the Industrial and Commercial Department of the Longevity Palace contracted by Nanchang in 1994, and then won the canteen bidding of Nanchang Blue Sky University in 1995 to enter the university market. In 2004, the group entered the country by acquiring a Shenzhen company.
Last November, a self media company called "Group Meal Industry", certified as the "number one new media and service platform in the group catering industry," released an interview with Li Sixing, Chairman of Zhongkuai Catering. Public information shows that Li Sixing is the younger brother of the founder of the company, Li Pingjin.
The article states that Zhongkuai Catering has "more than 700 university cafeteria projects nationwide, with an annual revenue scale comparable to that of Haidilao.".
As of December 31, 2022, Haidilao's annual revenue from continuing and discontinued operations was approximately 34.741 billion yuan, with a net profit of approximately 1.373 billion yuan.
Li Sixing stated in the article that one of the major formats of Zhongkuai Catering is the university format, and "delicious food+self operation" is the business strategy of Zhongkuai University Cafeteria. However, as of press release, the above-mentioned interview with Li Sixing has been unable to be found on the official account of "Group Food Industry".
In addition, unlike other group catering companies that commonly outsource joint ventures, Zhongkuai's university cafeteria projects are all self operated.
Li Sixing believes that the investment subcontracting system can easily lead to uneven quality of flavored food products, causing operational problems in canteens. Powerful catering companies need to solve this problem through unified procurement and self production, while also ensuring food safety through self operation.
What kind of business is contracting university canteens?
At present, the phenomenon of outsourcing university canteens to catering companies is very common. Usually, universities conduct open bidding, and the winning catering company can obtain the contracting rights for the cafeteria. Afterwards, the catering company will attract external investment as needed and rent some stalls to catering merchants in the form of rent or commission.
On the 8th, the reporter consulted a catering company in Wuhan as a merchant, and its staff explained that in Wuhan, most of the rental of university cafeteria stalls is based on a pickup model, and a small portion is based on rental models. "If you mention points, it's usually all inclusive, including shared utilities such as water and electricity. It's about 25-32 points to mention, depending on which school has different policies."
The so-called commission model, simply understood as the commission model, means that "offering 25-32 points" means that the commission ratio for catering companies is 25% -32%. For every 100 yuan earned by merchants, they need to allocate 25-32 yuan to the catering company that contracts the cafeteria.
The above staff stated that for merchants, the early investment in the pickup mode will be relatively less, mainly due to a deposit of 30000 yuan; The rental model requires a large initial investment. Taking a university cafeteria in Baishazhou, Wuhan as an example, renting a noodle stall would cost approximately 120000 yuan. In addition to a deposit of 30000 yuan, it also includes 50000 yuan in rent, 3000 yuan in management fees, 1500 yuan in shared expenses, and expenses for purchasing ingredients, equipment, and other expenses.
"This school currently has 3000 people, with only one cafeteria. The daily turnover of a noodle stall can reach about 3000 yuan, which is about 70-80000 yuan per month. University cafeterias usually have better turnover in the second half of the semester than in the first half, mainly because there will be more new students entering the second half of the semester, and the number of people will be higher," said the staff member.
In addition to directly contacting the catering companies that contract the cafeteria, merchants can also enter the university cafeteria through some franchise projects.
As a franchisee, the reporter learned from the franchisee of a catering project in Harbin that most of the franchise stores under the company's name are located in university canteens. The company can provide franchisees with stall resources to assist them in opening stores. In addition to paying a certain amount of franchise fees, brand management fees, and other fees to the brand, franchisees also need to pay a deposit of 20000 to 50000 yuan to the catering company that contracts the cafeteria, as well as the corresponding rent or commission amount. The commission ratio is between 25% and 30%.
So, is it easy to do business in college cafeteria stalls? Can you make money? A merchant selling chicken pot in a university cafeteria in Jiangxia District, Wuhan, told reporters that they are a franchised brand store that has only been in operation for about a year and has not yet made a profit. "I paid a franchise fee of 40000 to 50000 yuan in the early stage, and the stall was in the" pickup "mode. Water, electricity, and other factors were all included in the" pickup "mode, and I didn't make much money."
Subsequently, the reporter chatted with Yang Sen, a merchant who planned to transfer the cafeteria stall of a university in Henan, as a consultant. According to Yang Sen, he sells Rice noodles, meat buns, etc. in the cafeteria stall of the school. Although the daily turnover is less than that of fast food, it can also reach about 2500 yuan, leaving about 1000 yuan after the cost is removed; The weekend is lower, with a turnover of about 2000 yuan.
"The school has a stable flow of people. There are about ten thousand people in this school, and there are two canteens in total. Because ordering takeout in the school cafeteria requires going to the school entrance, students usually eat in the cafeteria," Yang Sen said.
Yang Sen introduced that its stall is based on a rental model, with an annual rent of 40000 yuan, and the rest being water and electricity expenses, which are around 1000 yuan per month. It has approximately 9 months of business hours per year. "Let's make a simple calculation, the gross profit is about 65%. Excluding utilities and rent, the gross profit is around 45%."
It is worth mentioning that regardless of the method of entering the university cafeteria, the final contract is signed with the cafeteria contractor, who is responsible for the management and investment of the entire cafeteria, while the school is responsible for hygiene inspections and other work. However, when merchants enter the cafeteria stalls of universities, the catering company and the school do not have the requirements for their business license, hygiene permit, and other related documents.
"As long as you have a health certificate, you don't need any other documents. The health certificate needs to be publicly displayed, and you can't open a business without it. The health certificate is easy to apply for, and the hospital can apply for it for a few tens of yuan. You can get the certificate on the same day," Yang Sen said.
The franchisee of a certain catering project in Harbin also confirmed to the reporter that operating stalls in university canteens does not require a business license or hygiene permit.
But universities often inspect the hygiene of each stall in the cafeteria more frequently. "The school has very strict requirements, and you must do a good job of hygiene before leaving at night," Yang Sen said.
As for whether the school will impose corresponding penalties, Yang Sen said he has not seen any merchants fined by the school for hygiene issues. It's all mouth talk, just give a warning, and then you'll do it right away.
