我国是一个人口众多的大国,食品需求量很大。据统计,在全国社会消费品零售总额中,吃的比重一直保持在50％以上。“民以食为天”,食品工业在整个国民经济中占有很重要的地位,国外经济界人士称食品工业为“永不衰败的产业”。 我国的食品工业包括粮食、植物油、肉类、乳品、蛋品、水产加工、糖果、烟酒、糕点及饮料罐头制造等25个门类,以及与之配套的食品机械、食品包装等完整的工业体系。改革开放的十几年中,食品工业的产值平均以每年10％以上的速度递增,到1993年,其固定资产原值和净增值占整个工业的比重已达6.7％和7.3％, China is a large country with a large population and the demand for food is very large. According to statistics, the proportion of food consumed in the total retail sales of consumer goods in the country has remained above 50%. “The people regard food as the heaven”, and the food industry occupies an important position in the entire national economy. People in foreign economic circles call the food industry an “unfading industry”. China’s food industry includes 25 categories including food, vegetable oil, meat, dairy products, egg products, aquatic products processing, confectionery, tobacco and alcohol, and confectionery and beverage cans, as well as a complete industrial system such as food machinery and food packaging. During more than a decade of reform and opening up, the output value of the food industry grew at an average annual rate of more than 10%. By 1993, the fixed assets and net value added had accounted for 6.7% and 7.3% of the total industry.