the period of 1986—1990 saw great changes in the diet of the chinese. grain, which used to be the main food of most people in china, is now playing a less important role. on the other hand, the meat and fish has increased rapidly.
the changes in diet can be accounted for by a number of factors. first, people are much wealthier than before. with higher income,they can afford to buy good foods. another factor is that people have realized the importance of a balanced diet to their health. lack of certain amount of meat or milk,for example, will result in poor health. finally, owing to the eeonomic reform, meat, chicken, fish and milk, which were scarce in the past, are produced in large quantities. for all these reasons, what was formerly called "the basket of vegetables" has.
to sum up, insignificant as those changes may seem, they are the signs of the improved economic condition in china. we believe that as long as the effort continuous in reform and opening to the outside world, there will be greater changes in people"s diet in the future.