I. General

The Research Institute for Food Safety Risk Administration and (hereinafter referred to as the Think Tank), jointly established by Jiangnan University and Jiangsu Food and Drug Administration (JSFDA), with participation of Jiangsu Institute for Food and Drug Control and Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, is the only provincial key think tank focusing on food safety risk administration and research under the approval of Leadership Group of CPC Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee on Philosophy and Social Science Planning in July, 2016. The Food Safety Research Base of Jiangsu Province, Jiangnan University is the core of the Think Tank. The Think Tank is also one of the first 15 provincial key social science base approved by Leadership Group of CPC Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee on Philosophy and Social Science Planning in August 2008, and also the only university research base in Jiangsu province that sets food safety risk administration as its professional research area.

The Think Tank is also among the first that listed in the CTTI (China Think Tank Index) Source Think Tanks. In the CTTI source think tank MRPA Evaluation report jointly released by Nanjing University and Guangming Daily in December 2016, the Think Tank ranked the ninth in the comprehensive rankings of all Project 211-based higher institutions (exclude Project 985-based higher institutions).

II．Research Characteristics

Over the past five years, the Think Tank has been adhering to problem-oriented researches with the principle of combining theory with practice. Shouldering the historical responsibility of “academic study for people” and upholding the principle of “standing upright and down-to-earth”, the Think Tank strives to strengthen its academic ideal of “interdisciplinary, distinctive characteristics and empirical research”. Considering actual situations of Jiangsu and the whole country, the Think Tank has committed to the research of food safety risk control and administration. Based on actual scenarios and specific problems, the Think Tank persevered its researches and achieved a series of symbolic outcomes through empirical investigations and case studies. First, following the approval of Social Governance Research on Food Safety Risk as a major national social science project, the Think Tank obtained 10 projects from the National Social Science Fund of China, the National Natural Science Fund of China and National Soft Science Research Program, and some 30 projects of provincial and ministry level. Second, more than 200 CSSCI papers were published, of which 45% were domestic high-end papers; and nearly 30 SSCI and SCI papers were published. The Think Tank also leads all 15 think tanks of the same level in Jiangsu province in the number of published high-quality papers, especially SSCI papers. Third, the Think Tank’s researches won numerous awards. The Introduction to 2013 China Development Report on Food Safety was awarded the second prize of the 7th Excellent Achievement Award of Humanities and Social Sciences Research of the Ministry of Education; the Introduction to 2014 China Development Report on Food Safety received the first prize of the 30th Excellent Achievement Award of Social Sciences Research of Shangdong Province; the Theory and Practice Innovation Achievements of China Food Safety Risk Governance was granted the 2016 Tengfei Award, the highest prize of Wuxi Municipal Government (Tengfei Award encourages achievements in five areas, including agriculture, industry, social course and livelihood project, with a prize bonus of RMB 200,000.) and two other thesis prizes from international academic institutions. Fourth, the Think Tank is a distinctive domestic brand with two MOE (Ministry of Education) approved social sciences reports: Report on Food Safety in China and Introduction to China Development and Report on Online Public Opinion on Food Safety, which have been published for five consecutive years. In the meantime, its Food Safety in China: A Comprehensive Review, the world’s first monograph focusing on China food safety and risk administration research based on food supply chain, was published by the prestigious Taylor & Francis Publishing Group in the United States in August 2014, gaining high academic appraises from international colleagues. The Think Tank also published a theory periodical named China Food Safety Management Review in China. Fifth, the Think Tank effectively assists governments in decision-making. It has published five advisory reports on MOE’s Expert Advice and the Think Tanks of Colleges and Universities, and several advisory reports on internal references of Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shandong provinces, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Government and Guangming Daily. The leaders of the Central Government including Zhang Gaoli, Liu Yandong and Wang Yang all made important instructions on these reports. Some ten people from the China Food and Drug Administration, National Health and Family Planning Commission, party committees and governments of Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shandong provinces and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region replied to these reports.

III. Researchers

At present, there are twelve professional researchers in the Think Tank, including three professors, five associate professors, four post doctors; and professors and associate professors all hold doctorates. Among the team members, three are the Young and Middle-aged Science and Technology Talents and The Six High-level Talents of Jiangsu Province. One person is included in the MOE New Century Talent Program and five young doctors received the title of Honor Scholars of Jiangnan University respectively. In June 2013, the "China Food Risk Prevention and Control Management Research” team, which is composed of core members of the base, was approved as the first batch of excellent social sciences innovation team in universities and colleges of Jiangsu Province.

IV. Government-commissioned projects and awards

As a third-party research institute, since 2014, the Think Tank has undertaken 8 important projects (excluding the various academic projects from other governmental departments or the National Natural Science Foundation of China) directly commissioned by the China Food and Drug Administration, and food and drug administration of Jiangsu, Shandong provinces and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Since 2014, the Think Tank has won one second prize of Excellent Achievement Award of Humanities and Social Sciences Research from the Ministry of Education; one first prize, three second prizes and one third prize of Excellent Achievement Award at ministerial and provincial-level; two first prizes, four second prizes and five third prizes of Excellent Achievement Award and two first prizes, one second prize and two third prizes of Natural Science Paper Awards from Wuxi Municipality. The Theory and Practice Innovation Achievements of China Food Safety Risk Administration was granted the 2016 Tengfei Award, the highest prize of Wuxi Municipal Government. This is also the first social sciences research that won this award.

V. Current human structure, management system and contact information

Human Structure:At present, there are fourteen core members (excluding part-time employees inside and outside the university), including three professors, eight associate professors and three post doctors.All professors and associate professors hold doctorates.

Management System:The Think Tank implements the Chief Expert Administration System, under which the Institute Committee makes collective decisions.The main function of the Institute Committee is to execute decisions of the Institute Council and the Academic Committee and discuss specific issues related to the construction of the Think Tank. The Chief Expert, Director, Deputy Director and Social Sciences Department of Jiangnan University manage the personnel.

Chief Expert:Wu Linhai, second-grade professor and doctoral supervisor of Jiangnan University, Tel: 13506179899, E-mail: wlh6799@vip.163.com.

Director:Zhu Jinwei, Vice Dean of School of Business, Jiangnan University, Tel:13912492723, E-mail:jiuweizhu@jiangnan.edu.cn.

Deputy Director:Wang Jianhua; Associate professor of Jiangnan University, Tel:18251549736, E-mail:wiwth_99@163.com.

Address:Room 501, School of Business, Jiangnan University, No.1800 Lihu Blvd, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, P.R.China, Post Code: 214122.