Sorry seems to be the hardest word, as they say, and noodle chain Ajisen (China) Holdings Ltd. has learned a painful lesson in the value of owning up before it’s too late.

　　正如人们常说，抱歉二字似乎最难说出口。味千(中国) 控股有限公司(Ajisen (China) Holdings Ltd., 简称：味千(中国))在及时认错的重要性上汲取了惨痛的教训。

　　The fall and fall of the ramen chain’s star started last month when media reports said that the company’s broth was made with cheap powders and other instant seasoning, rather than by boiling pig bones as it had claimed in its advertising. The stock plummeted more than 8% on July 26.

　　Ramsay de Give for The Wall Street Journal味千（中国）拉面连锁店的名气从上个月开始一再下滑，媒体报道说味千（中国）的骨汤是廉价汤粉和其他速食调料制成的，而不是广告中宣称的用猪骨熬制而成。该公司股价7月26日暴跌8%以上。

　　It’s not necessarily a food scare up there with the likes of melamine, for example, but it was more than enough to spook investors already hypersensitive about food safety in China.

　　这未必如同三聚氰胺这类东西引发的食品恐慌，但完全足以令已经对中国食品安全极度敏感的投资者不安。

　　Ajisen admitted that its soup base concentrate is made at a centralized food factory, and explained in a statement that the soup ingredients are “made from pig bones instead of soup powder” and that “the pig bones are stewed into soup base concentrate by employing advanced technology and expertise from Japan.”

　　味千(中国)承认汤底浓缩液是统一由一家食品厂生产的，并在一份声明中解释说，骨汤配料来自猪骨而非汤粉，并且汤底浓缩液是采用来自日本的先进技术和工艺由猪骨熬制而成。

　　But there were more skeletons in the closet. Soon after, a local media report on the mainland said Ajisen was fined 780,000 yuan in May 2010 by Shanghai’s food safety regulator for using sorbitol in its noodles, a stabilizing agent used in flour products banned at the time.

　　但是其中还有更多不可告人的秘密。不久后，中国内地媒体报道说，味千(中国)在2010年5月被上海食品监管机构处以78万元的罚款，因其在面条中使用了当时被禁止用于面食的稳定剂山梨糖醇。

　　The company confirmed the reports, and said in a statement it stopped using sorbitol immediately after the Chinese authorities brought an action against Ajisen in May 2009, without specifying what action was taken. Ajisen also said since January 2010 Chinese authorities have allowed the use of sorbitol in noodle products, whereas previously there had been no national standards governing the use of the additive. That sent Ajisen’s stock down 16% on August 1. In a later statement dated August 12, the company clarified that it didn’t make an announcement in relation to the fine at the time because ceasing the use of sorbitol “did not pose any material adverse effect on the quality of the noodle products” while the fine “did not have any significant impact on the profits” of the company.

　　公司证实了上述报道，并在一份声明中说，在中国当局2009年5月对其采取行动后，公司就立即停止了山梨糖醇的使用，但并未指明中国当局采取了何种行动。味千（中国）还说，从2010年1月开始，中国当局开始允许在面食中添加山梨糖醇，而之前一直没有管理这种添加剂使用的全国标准。这使得味千股价8月1日跌了16%。在后来标注日期为8月12日的一份声明中，公司澄清说并未在当时发表有关受到处罚的声明是因为停止使用山梨糖醇“对面条产品的质量不构成任何重大的不良影响”，而罚金“对公司的利润没有任何重大影响”。

　　The company then issued an apology on August 5, saying that it is committed to providing safe and healthy food to consumers, but said trading in the stock would be halted.

　　于是该公司在8月5日发布道歉声明说，它致力于为消费者提供安全健康的食品，但股票也将停牌。

　　Ajisen then turned proactive, albeit belatedly, releasing a lengthy document on August 12 detailing the production process of its soup base (In case you’ve ever wondered how to make pig-bone soup base from concentrate, here’s the nitty-gritty of it all.)

　　味千随后变得未雨绸缪起来，虽然来得太晚了些，它在8月12日发布长篇文件，详述骨汤底料的生产流程（要是你想知道如何利用骨汤原液制作猪骨汤，点击这里察看全部真相）。

　　Upon resumption of trading on Monday, the company surely expected no less than a total beating, not least because it missed out on the Great Asian Market Selloff of the past two weeks while it was suspended. The stock fell as much as 15% to HK$8.70, a more than 50% correction from its record high on July 15 of HK$18.00, though by midday it recouped some of those losses and was down a more modest 6.6%.

　　味千公司肯定预料到，周一复牌之时，该公司股票会遭受沉重打击，特别是鉴于它在停牌期间错过了过去两周亚洲市场的急剧下跌。味千股票周一盘中的最大跌幅达到15%，跌至8.70港元，较7月15日纪录高点18.00港元回调50%有余。不过到前市收盘时它已挽回了部分损失，跌幅缩小至6.6%。

　　Ajisen has certainly learned quite a lesson from the incident. From its announcement dated August 12 to the Hong Kong stock exchange:

　　味千从这件事当中自然是汲取了宝贵的教训。以下摘自它给港交所的声明，标注日期为8月12日：

　　The Company has treated the incidents most seriously. On top of the full cooperation with governmental authorities regarding their inspection and operation guidance, the Company has enhanced the communication with the media and the public in order that material disclosure could be made in a timely manner.

　　本公司高度重视本次突发事件，全力配合政府部门的检查和工作指导，加强与媒体和公众的沟通，及时进行重大信息的披露。

　　As a socially responsible enterprise being accountable to its shareholders, the Company appreciates the constant trust and support from devoted consumers of Ajisen Ramen. With heartfelt gratitude, the Directors will learn a salutary lesson from the incidents and shall commit itself to improving corporate governance immediately. In particular, the Company will tighten its hold on the monitoring of internal control process…The Group will adhere strictly to the relevant laws and regulations and earnestly welcome the supervision from the public and the media. The Board and all the personnel of the Group are confident that, with unswerving commitment, the brand image of Ajisen and corporate value of the Company will be retained and greatly heightened.

　　作为一个对公众和股东负责任的企业，本公司感谢消费者对味千拉面的厚爱和一直以来的支持。董事怀着一份感恩的心，将从这次事件中吸取教训，并立即致力于完善公司治理，着手稽核公司内部管理流程，确保高标准的产品品质，一如既往地为消费者提供安全的食品和优质的服务。本集团坚持遵守相关的法律法规，欢迎大家继续对本集团进行监督。董事会及本集团同仁有信心维护和提升味千品牌的公众形象及公司价值。