Twenty years of cold chain

Chapter 15 Shocking to Hear It

In early March, universities across the country started their new semester. This was Hu Shutong's last half-semester, and it was time to start working on his graduation thesis. The University of Minnesota uses publication in three journals as the standard: national academic journals, professional journals, or at least the university journal. There's a saying that goes, "If you write a good thesis, you can pick and choose your job."

In mid-March, Hu Shutong asked the company for three days off because Professor Pang Shiyou returned to the University of Minnesota to begin a three-day professional lecture series and preparations for the food science laboratory.

In addition to professors and senior laboratory staff, the food science laboratory plans to recruit five part-time interns, which is an unprecedented opportunity for all students.

In the School of Food Science and Technology, the new major of Cold Chain Logistics holds a somewhat awkward position. Like Chinese Language and Literature and Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language in the Chinese Department, Cold Chain Logistics lacks a strong, established reputation. Moreover, the major is so new, with a small student body, mostly comprised of students transferred from other majors, that it seems rather weak.

As expected, Pang Shiyou's lectures all revolved around fermentation engineering, grain, oil and plant protein engineering, food chemistry and nutrition engineering, etc.

Pang Shiyou is approaching sixty years old. He wears black-rimmed round glasses and has a somewhat prosperous appearance, with noticeable gray hair at his temples. Pang Shiyou is a highly authoritative figure in the food science industry, having dedicated half his life to research and development in food science and safety. He and his technical team have obtained numerous technical patents and won gold medals at international expositions.

As is customary, the content of each day's lectures is displayed at the entrance of the academic hall. However, there was no display on the third day, which made people wonder if the selection process for the food science laboratory was about to begin.

On this day, the academic hall was packed with people, many of whom sat on small stools in the aisles.

However, Pang Shiyou's speech surprised all the students present.

"Students, before we begin today's lecture, I'd like to share some data with you. In our country, the annual loss rate of fruits and vegetables during harvesting, transportation, and storage reaches nearly 30%, resulting in the waste of 12 million tons of fruit and 130 million tons of vegetables each year, with a total loss exceeding 70 billion RMB. In Europe and America, the loss rate can be controlled below 5%. Last year, our country had fewer than 30,000 refrigerated trucks, accounting for less than 0.3% of freight vehicles."

These figures are alarming; it's not 3%, it's 30%!

This concept is too terrifying to contemplate; the losses are simply too great!

"We work in the food industry, a field that is broad and complex, but our mission remains unchanged. First, to ensure people can eat with peace of mind; second, to minimize losses for the country."

"All of you students here are talents in the food industry, but our country is extremely lacking in talents who combine food and distribution. We must step out of our professional logic and not limit our future to being food engineers in a large company. In the distribution field, we should use our real skills to practice and manage. Stepping out of the field means not only stepping out of the campus, but also stepping out of our fixed professional thinking. At any time, it is a great honor to do practical things for the people."

A thunderous applause erupted from the audience. Pang Shiyou continued, "Mingda's approach to cold chain logistics is very forward-thinking. The losses I just mentioned can only be minimized with strict temperature control throughout the entire process. Therefore, regarding the establishment of this food science laboratory, I have suggested to the university that graduates majoring in cold chain logistics be included. This will serve as a model for future food science laboratory construction. A new century, a new journey. We are thirty years behind Europe and America. Students, this is a path worth pursuing, a path worthy of our dedication and perseverance!"

Hu Shutong, sitting in the audience, was deeply moved. Pang Shiyou's appearance was like a lighthouse standing tall amidst distant waves; every word from this great figure was like a powerful punch, ringing a resounding bell for exploring the world. This also greatly boosted Hu Shutong's morale. The revitalization and rise of the industry requires the joint efforts of countless people, and Pang Shiyou's words were like a reassuring pill!

Hu Shutong and his roommates reunited once again, finding a hot pot restaurant where the brothers chatted freely about their internship experiences over the past six months. All of his roommates had chosen to intern in their hometown city; students from Mingda University were indeed in high demand. Some had already signed agreements with companies to become full-time employees after graduation, all working for some of the largest cold chain logistics companies in the area.

The dormitories at the University of Minnesota are all six-person rooms. There are 22 male students majoring in refrigeration engineering. Hu Shutong's dormitory only had four students majoring in refrigeration engineering. Two students majoring in food engineering were added to the dormitory, but they moved off-campus to rent a place after a short time.

The shy guy who kept scratching his neck and fidgeting with his fingers was called "Erqiu," his real name was Qiu Shuanghu. The dull-witted guy who always seemed to be pondering something was "Lao Chen," his real name was Chen Zhe. Sitting next to Hu Shutong was a man named Jiang Zhipeng. He was burly, with a square face and broad shoulders, and his attire was completely different from ordinary people. He wore an exquisite watch, had a jade Pixiu pendant hanging from his wrist, and a mobile phone—the latest mobile communication device—in front of him.

Jiang Zhipeng is a well-known rich second-generation in the entire college. His family owns "Qingyuan," a famous ice cream brand in Qingyan City, a company that has been established for over 20 years. Erqiu Nie Nie didn't dare to say anything, and Lao Chen Dai Dai didn't say much either. In addition, since the two were both from Qingyan City, they usually had more to talk about.

"Old Hu, you're really something. Before I came here, the factory was studying your cold storage plan. We couldn't just copy it directly; we were just studying and learning from it."

"I'd be content if your grand undertaking could offer me even a little something to learn from."

"Tianheng is renovating its old equipment and selling it off. Someone exposed this on Tianya, saying they're resorting to any means to cut costs. What are you thinking? You won't be staying there until autumn, will you?"

"Let's take it one step at a time, but the thesis is more worrying than deciding where to go."

Jiang Zhipeng slapped his forehead. "To be honest, I don't even dare to think about this during the day, for fear of dreaming about it at night!" As he spoke, he clinked glasses with Hu Shutong, then made a solemn request, "Old Hu, could you help me with my thesis? Ah, not to write it for me, but could you give me some pointers? If not, could you at least find me a topic that's suitable for my situation?"

"I can help you refine your logical framework if you have any ideas, but I can't help you with choosing a topic."

Jiang Zhipeng clasped his hands together as if praying to Buddha, "Old Hu, I'm in a real bind. If I'm stuck on this thesis and have to postpone my graduation, my job at the company will be in serious trouble."

Hu Shutong clicked his tongue. "Your family business is a ready-made topic. You can write a prospect analysis of an ice cream factory or something similar, which is perfect for our refrigeration engineering thesis topics."

Jiang Zhipeng slapped his thigh, "You can just spout off like that, you're practically a genius! But you still have to keep an eye on things along the way."

"Look how cowardly you are. Just analyze it based on the actual situation."

"No way, this is really a coward!" As he spoke, Jiang Zhipeng narrowed his eyes. "Old Hu, have you considered going back to Qingyan in the fall? My dad can offer you this annual salary." Jiang Zhipeng spread his five fingers under the table.

Jiang Zhipeng's academic performance is also good, and his foundation is solid. However, in an environment like the University of Ming, he can only be considered a mid-level student. Hu Shutong is undoubtedly a top student. Jiang Zhipeng has mentioned Hu Shutong to his family many times. Everyone wants to recruit such a talent, and Qingyuan's strength is more than enough to satisfy Hu Shutong's career aspirations.

"I'll consider this once the paper results are out."

"Waiting for your news!" Jiang Zhipeng suddenly stood up. "Stop, stop, stop! Today, all of us brothers are getting together to celebrate Lao Hu getting into the food science lab!"

"Yes, yes!" Everyone echoed in agreement. It's not hard to see from today's lecture that someone from the cold chain logistics field will inevitably enter the food science laboratory, and that person can only be Hu Shutong.

Hu Shutong didn't say much about the unresolved matter, but simply picked up his glass, smiled, and toasted with everyone.

……