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.

　　正如人們常說，抱歉二字似乎最難說出口。味千(中國) 控股有限公司(Ajisen (China) Holdings Ltd., 簡稱：味千(中國))在及時認錯的重要性上汲取了慘痛的教訓。

　　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（中國）拉面連鎖店的名氣從上個月開始一再下滑，媒體報道說味千（中國）的骨湯是廉價湯粉和其他速食調料制成的，而不是廣告中宣稱的用豬骨熬制而成。該公司股價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.

　　這未必如同三聚氰胺這類東西引發的食品恐慌，但完全足以令已經對中國食品安全極度敏感的投資者不安。

　　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(中國)承認湯底濃縮液是統一由一家食品廠生產的，并在一份聲明中解釋說，骨湯配料來自豬骨而非湯粉，并且湯底濃縮液是采用來自日本的先進技術和工藝由豬骨熬制而成。

　　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.

　　但是其中還有更多不可告人的秘密。不久后，中國內地媒體報道說，味千(中國)在2010年5月被上海食品監管機構處以78萬元的罰款，因其在面條中使用了當時被禁止用于面食的穩定劑山梨糖醇。

　　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.

　　公司證實了上述報道，并在一份聲明中說，在中國當局2009年5月對其采取行動后，公司就立即停止了山梨糖醇的使用，但并未指明中國當局采取了何種行動。味千（中國）還說，從2010年1月開始，中國當局開始允許在面食中添加山梨糖醇，而之前一直沒有管理這種添加劑使用的全國標準。這使得味千股價8月1日跌了16%。在后來標注日期為8月12日的一份聲明中，公司澄清說并未在當時發表有關受到處罰的聲明是因為停止使用山梨糖醇“對面條產品的質量不構成任何重大的不良影響”，而罰金“對公司的利潤沒有任何重大影響”。

　　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.

　　于是該公司在8月5日發布道歉聲明說，它致力于為消費者提供安全健康的食品，但股票也將停牌。

　　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.)

　　味千隨后變得未雨綢繆起來，雖然來得太晚了些，它在8月12日發布長篇文件，詳述骨湯底料的生產流程（要是你想知道如何利用骨湯原液制作豬骨湯，點擊這里察看全部真相）。

　　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%.

　　味千公司肯定預料到，周一復牌之時，該公司股票會遭受沉重打擊，特別是鑒于它在停牌期間錯過了過去兩周亞洲市場的急劇下跌。味千股票周一盤中的最大跌幅達到15%，跌至8.70港元，較7月15日紀錄高點18.00港元回調50%有余。不過到前市收盤時它已挽回了部分損失，跌幅縮小至6.6%。

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

　　味千從這件事當中自然是汲取了寶貴的教訓。以下摘自它給港交所的聲明，標注日期為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.

　　本公司高度重視本次突發事件，全力配合政府部門的檢查和工作指導，加強與媒體和公眾的溝通，及時進行重大信息的披露。

　　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.

　　作為一個對公眾和股東負責任的企業，本公司感謝消費者對味千拉面的厚愛和一直以來的支持。董事懷著一份感恩的心，將從這次事件中吸取教訓，并立即致力于完善公司治理，著手稽核公司內部管理流程，確保高標準的產品品質，一如既往地為消費者提供安全的食品和優質的服務。本集團堅持遵守相關的法律法規，歡迎大家繼續對本集團進行監督。董事會及本集團同仁有信心維護和提升味千品牌的公眾形象及公司價值。