Future.com, Beijing, December 22 (Intern Yin Ruiyao, Reporter Bai Xiaoyi) Recently, the entry "A variety of named snacks of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences is not true" appeared on the hot search, causing netizens to "snacks will also 'academic fraud'?"and other topics.
According to the Shanghai Municipal Consumer Rights Protection Commission, a number of snacks named "Agricultural University" and "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" were falsely promoted, and the quality inspection of some "academic fraud" Internet celebrity snacks did not meet the standards. In addition, a reporter from Future.com found that many e-commerce platforms are still selling such "academic fraud" snacks, and the categories sold are varied, making it difficult for consumers to distinguish the authenticity. (Exposure email: rcaijing@163.)com News**: 010-56793767).
The Shanghai Consumer Protection Committee cracked down on a variety of counterfeit "snacks of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences".
Recently, the Shanghai Municipal Consumer Rights Protection Commission randomly selected 13 kinds of snack foods sold online that claimed to be developed by the "Academy of Agricultural Sciences", "Agricultural University" and other institutions, and immediately carried out investigation and verification. Among them, 5 products were explicitly denied by relevant institutions, 4 products were confirmed to participate in research and development by relevant institutions, and the relevant institutions of the remaining 4 products did not make a clear response.
The relevant institutions of the "Nine Agricultural University Vegetable Rolls" commodity replied Source: CCTV News.
Among them, a snack called "Jiu0 Agricultural University Vegetable Roll" is sold on a number of e-commerce platforms, and its sales link is marked with the words "Northeast Agricultural University", and the word "Agricultural University" is also printed on the outer packaging of the product, which seems to be closely related to "Northeast Agricultural University". In this regard, the Shanghai Consumer Protection Committee sent an inquiry letter to Northeast Agricultural University, and Northeast Agricultural University replied that the school does not carry out external production and operation work, the goods mentioned are not products produced by the school, and its commodity publicity is not true. In addition, Northeast Agricultural University also said that the school has not carried out any cooperation with the commissioned manufacturers and commissioned manufacturers marked on the packaging of goods.
It is worth noting that these products are not only fraudulent in terms of advertising, but also do not match the labels in terms of nutritional content. For example, according to the Shanghai Consumer Protection Committee, the measured protein content of "Jiu Nong Vegetable Roll" is 7 per 100 grams49 grams, which is less than 10 grams per 100 grams as labeled on the package0 g;The measured fat content is 21 per 100 grams8 grams, which is higher than the package label of 15 grams per 100 grams8 grams. Therefore, the measured content of the two nutrients of the product did not meet the allowable error range of the national standard, and the fat content of the product was seriously exceeded.
Screenshot of the sales of "Nine Agricultural Vegetable Rolls" on the e-commerce platform.
After CCTV News**, the reporter of Future.com searched for the product on a number of e-commerce platforms and found that the "Jiu0 Agricultural Vegetable Roll" was still sold normally and was not affected by the turmoil. In addition, these merchants who sell "Jiu Nong University Vegetable Rolls" also sell other snack products labeled "Northwest Agricultural University", "Northeast Agricultural University" and "Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences".
The logo of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences has been counterfeited, and it is difficult for consumers to distinguish the authenticity.
Some consumers reported to reporters that they like to buy these snacks under the banner of "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" and "Agricultural University", "I feel that these snacks will be of higher quality than other foods we eat daily, and they also seem to be greener and healthier, with no additives." When the reporter asked him if he had any concerns about authenticity, he received a reply saying, "This kind of should not dare to be fake, after all, there are so many academies of agricultural sciences and universities that will defend their rights."
In addition, there are also many consumers who say that they don't care about its authenticity, thinking that "it doesn't matter, as long as it's delicious, large and affordable", "I don't care too much about these things, I just want to give myself more psychological comfort when I buy this kind of snack".
Consumer Li Ran (pseudonym) mentioned that he now knows that the so-called snacks produced by the so-called "Agricultural University" and "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" he bought before are all counterfeit products, although he is very mindful of this kind of behavior to deceive consumers, but he does not know how to deal with it.
On an e-commerce shopping platform, it is a snack product that is named "Academy of Agricultural Sciences".
According to this, after the reporter of the future network searched on a number of e-commerce platforms with the keyword "snacks of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences", there were many categories such as dried meat, chocolate, snacks, etc., and the product publicity was even more varied, unanimously claiming that it was a product of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences of various provinces, but it was difficult for consumers to distinguish the authenticity of the business when purchasing.
Snacks "academic fraud", both the platform and the seller are responsible.
When people buy food, in addition to personal preferences, there are some basic demands that are common, mainly safety, environmental protection and characteristics. Statements such as snacks from the Academy of Agricultural Sciences and vegetables from the Agricultural University can provide endorsement for these demands. Fan Chunlei, an associate researcher at the Institute of Psychology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, mentioned in his analysis of consumer psychology.
Fan Chunlei further said that the "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" and "Agricultural University" are professional institutions in the field of grain and food, and professional institutions are more authoritative and trustworthy than individual or celebrity endorsements. The main task of the "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" and "Agricultural University" is teaching and scientific research, and the research in the field of grain and food emphasizes basic, innovative and high-quality, not for the purpose of profit, and is often small-scale and high-investment, thus creating a social image of the "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" that is inevitably safe, credible, green, environmentally friendly and technologically proprietary.
In response to the false propaganda of some "snacks of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences", Fan Chunlei believes that the relevant parties need to clarify in time to set the record straight.
From a legal point of view, merchants should strictly follow the actual situation of the goods to carry out publicity, and shall not deceive or mislead consumers, and shall not conduct false or misleading commercial promotions. If the operator commits the above-mentioned acts, the consumer has the right to request the merchant to refund one and compensate three in accordance with the Consumer Rights and Interests Protection**, and the market supervision and administration department has the right to require the business to suspend business for rectification, impose fines and confiscate illegal gains. Xue Krati Tayir, a lawyer at Shanghai Qifang Law Firm, said in an interview with a reporter from Future.com.
Lawyer Xuekrati Tayir reminded that in the absence of any authorization, the use of names such as "Academy of Agricultural Sciences" and "Agricultural University" by merchants is obviously a "free-riding" behavior, which constitutes unfair competition, and the relevant scientific research institutions have the right to claim infringement liability against them, and if some names have been registered as trademarks in accordance with the law, they can also claim trademark infringement liability from the operator.
If an online platform operator, as an online service provider, learns that a merchant infringes on the civil rights and interests of consumers by means of false advertising, exaggerated publicity, or the sale of counterfeit and shoddy products, if it fails to take necessary measures, it must bear joint and several liability with the merchant. The platform party must fulfill the obligation of prior review, and in the case of obvious lack of relevant authorization qualifications, it shall require the merchant to supplement or modify. After receiving a consumer complaint, it should also verify the investigation and assist in handling the complaint case. Lawyer Shekrati Tayir said.
Lawyer Xuekrati Tayir suggested that consumers should retain evidence in a legal way when encountering such problems, and if necessary, they can preserve evidence through notarization and blockchain storage. After that, the consumer can send evidence to the platform to file a complaint, and request the platform to fulfill its supervision obligations and take corrective measures such as disconnecting the link and suspending the accountor claim losses against the merchant through mediation or litigation, and if the platform fails to take necessary measures in a timely manner, it may be required to bear joint and several liabilities at the same time, protect its legitimate rights and interests through legal means, and jointly maintain the "trust on the tip of the tongue".