In several earlier blogs, I reported that coffee consumption in China is soaring, to the point that we can speak of a coffee culture. This trend has been developing constantly and now I feel comfortable to announce that a uniquely Chinese coffee culture is in place. This culture is affected by a number of recent trends: the nationalist trend and the punk-diet of the growing group of young single professionals.

• Guochao – or the ‘national trend’; A trend that currently affects virtually every aspect of Chinese society is guochao, or the ‘national trend’, which encompasses a renewed interest in traditional Chinese culture (both material and immaterial). The economic reforms of the late 20th century made many (then) young Chinese turn their back on traditions, seeking new solutions in the present and in the western world. This is now changing. The shift can be partly linked to the enormous advancement of Chinese science and technology. Chinese now have a lot to be proud of. Recent anti-Chinese sentiments in the West are another driver of this trend. The national trend is noticeable in several aspects, including on packaging and the use of traditional Chinese symbols.
• Pengke yangsheng – the ‘punk diet’ A trend that has appeared among the same post-90/post-2000 consumer segment is pengke yangsheng, or the ‘punk diet’. These consumers tend to work late, often until after midnight. They smoke less than their parents, but eat irregularly, with a preference for snacks and sweets, that can be eaten in front of your PC. However, these consumers also want to stay fit and healthy. They frequent the gym, but also try to get nutrition from convenience foods enriched with nutrients. These can be vitamins and minerals, but also extracts from traditional Chinese medicinal (TCM) herbs.

As for the nationalist trend, China’s home grown coffee is gaining market share in its home market. ‘Imported coffee’ is no longer automatically perceived as superior to the domestic bean. Another guochao development is that China’s leading TCM pharmacy, Tongrentang, has established a coffee shop concept in which you can order coffee enriched with various TCM herbs.

The influence of the punk diet trend is much stronger. It has led to coining the concept of ‘dirty coffee’. Dirty coffee is a relatively new type of coffee made by pouring hot espresso over extremely cold milk. It’s become popular in Asian countries including China, Japan, South Korea, and Thailand. In China, the expression is evolving to adding lots of ingredients that you would not normally associate with coffee. This trend is undoubtedly also informed by the immensely popular milk tea of which young Chinese can consume several litres per day. Luckin Coffee was the first to introduce the term dirty coffee.

Various other chains quickly followed suit. The following photo shows two dirty coffees from the fancy chain Vista Coffee.

The ‘dirtiest’ picture that I have come across sofar is also provided by Vista: coffee with two youtiao (fried dough sticks) stuck into it. To make the dirty impression complete, they have added a plate of fish as well. Youtiao is a traditional food, so this picture also reflects the nationalist trend. Why would you only drink tea with your dim sum?

The developments proceed rapidly, so this blog is a little messy, which suits the dirty image of the products I am introducing here. I will keep you up to date as usual.

Peter Peverelli is active in and with China since 1975 and regularly travels to the remotest corners of that vast nation. He is a co-author of a major book introducing the cultural drivers behind China’s economic success

In a few earlier blogs, I introduced novel foods designed by students for their graduation. One was dedicated to vinegar-based foods, another had a more general nature. The inventors were typically students of food science.

Chinese students have not only continued these innovative activities, but have combined it with their innate entrepreneurial instinct. A number of agricultural universities and colleges have developed novel foods and have started commercialising these themselves. An important driving force behind these commercial activities is the popularity of the TikTok (Douyin) platform, on which students can advertise their products through direct broadcasting.

In this post, I will introduce a number of novel foods developed and marketed by students of various Chinese universities. Their professors have also particpated in the development, but usually prefer to remain in the background, and allow the limelight for their students.

South China Agricultural University (Huanong)

According to the official introduction of South China Agricultural University, in the 1930s, the Agricultural College of Lingnan University, the predecessor of Huanong, had a dairy farm with the scale of one to two hundred cows. This laid the basis for their dairy specialisation. Later, the research field was focussed on the production and development of yogurt. In 1997, Huanong established the Dairy Factory of South China Agricultural University and officially started selling yogurt to the outside world.

Compared with yoghurt on the market, Huanong yoghurt is fresh and contains fewer additives. Its raw materials are fresh milk, bacteria and sugar. Huanong yoghurt’s sales slogan is: our yoghurt is like a meal cooked by our own family. It may not taste as attractive as restaurants, but we believe that simplicity can do the trick’.

Southwest University

Southwest Konjac is a product developed by Southwest University, founded in 2012. The story says that in 1979, Professor Liu Peiying of Southern Agricultural University discovered that Japan purchased large volumes of konjac from Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, and initiated research into konjac. The university registered its own konjac brand, and founded the KGM Functional Food R&D Centre to develop functional products, special medicinal foods, medicines, beauty products, etc., all with Konjac as raw material.

Yunnan Agricultural University

When talking about Yunnan, people usually think of fresh flower cake. In fact, the fresh flower jelly developed by Yunnan Agricultural University and the Yunnan Highland Agricultural Industry Research Institute is also very special. At present, the fresh flower jelly series includes four flavours: rose, jasmine, chrysanthemum and osmanthus. There are fresh flowers in each jelly.

Hunan Agricultural University

Fantianwa is a brand of spicy dough sticks, a traditional product of Hunan that has gain national popularity during the past couple of years, developed by Hunan Agricultural University. In addition to being the leading brand, these spicy strips are also unique in taste. Their sales slogan in: ‘it makes people feel like they can “go to heaven” after eating’. Fantianwa has also created a toplevel clean room, becoming the first spicy stick enterprise in Hunan with HACCP certification and ISO9001 quality management system certification.

Xinjiang Shihezi University

Shennei brand carrot juice is not only alive in the memory of Xinjiang children, but also makes some people who don’t like to eat carrots change their minds about this vegetable. In 1996, Shihezi University set up the Shennei Xinjiang Product Research and Development Centre, and carrot juice is one of its products adapted to local conditions. Shennei carrot juice is made from a local variey of carrot, which is produced in the north slope of Tianshan Mountain, and is freshly pressed by cell wall breaking technology.

There are several more of these university-developed novel foods. The above my personal pick, but I will be most happy to guide those who want to know more, like partenering with one of this high-quality institutions.

Peter Peverelli is active in and with China since 1975 and regularly travels to the remotest corners of that vast nation. He is a co-author of a major book introducing the cultural drivers behind China’s economic success.

You can find bamboo objects in European homes and occasionally life bamboo growing in European gardens. Clothes made of bamboo fibre are also appearing. When you ask Europeans if they would like to taste bamboo, they may be less eager. Chinese obviously do not eat full-grown bamboo. Only panda bears do that and even they do so with some diffulty. Chinese eat bamboo shoots, very young bamboo.

Dried bamboo shoots have a bright yellow colour and tender meat. They are rich in nutrients like protein, cellulose, and amino acids. They fit the requirements of the modern consumers: low fat, low sugar and high in dietary fibre. Bamboo shoots are in trace elements like calcium, phosphorus, iron, carotene, vitamins B1, B2, and C. According to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), bamboo can increase appetite, prevent constipation, cool and detoxify. It is a pure natural health food that is popular among consumers.

China is one of the largest producers of bamboo in the world. There are 22 genera and more than 200 species distributed throughout the country. However, the main bamboo species for excellent bamboo shoots are the red shell bamboo from Xiacun Township, Yanling County, Hunan, the yellow bamboo from Guangxi Lei bamboo and early bamboo in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and the Pearl River Basin, Lin’an, Fujian, Yichun City, Wanzai County, Yifeng County and other regions in Jiangxi Province, Moso bamboo, Moso bamboo and green bamboo in Taiwan and other places.

Production

Data from the “Analysis Report on the Development Status and Future Prospects of China’s Bamboo Shoot Industry from 2021-2027” released by IRG shows that the production of bamboo shoots in China has been steadily increasing during the past few years. The following table shows the production and growth of the period 2018 – 2019.

Top regions

According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, in 2019, the highest output of dried bamboo shoots was in Fujian: 214,917 mt; followed by Zhejiang with 191,223 mt of dried bamboo shoots; and Guangxi with 180,536 mt of dried bamboo shoots. Combined, these three regions were good for almost 57% of the total national production.

According to data from the Zhejiang Bureau of Statistics, the output of dried bamboo shoots in Zhejiang Province is relatively stable. In 2018, the production of dried bamboo shoots in Zhejiang Province was 197,434 mt, up 5.8%; in 2019, the production of dried bamboo shoots in Zhejiang Province was 191,223 mt, up 3.1%.

The Tianmu Mountain region in Lin’an, Zhejiang, is known as the southern bamboo town. The famous dried bamboo shoots of Tianmu are mainly made from fresh bamboo shoots of Dianthus. It was famous around the world as early as 400 years ago. There are five main types of dried bamboo shoots in Tianmu. The thicker and softer ones are called “fat buds”, the thin and long ones are called “bald buds”, and there are “Xiaoting”, “Straight Tip”, “Bakeout”, etc. “Fat buds” are suitable as an ingredient for roasting meat, “bald buds” and “Xiao Ting” can be used in soups, and “Bao Ting” are made from the tender tips of bamboo shoots, which regarded as the top grade in dried bamboo shoots.

Foreign trade

In 2019, the export volume of dried bamboo shoots and shreds from China was 1865.5 mt, and the import volume was 35.6 mt. From January to November 2020, the export volume of dried bamboo shoots in China was 1631.2 mt, and the import volume was 36 mt.

According to China Customs data, in 2019, the export value of dried bamboo shoots and shreds in China was USD 17.584 mln and the import value was USD 693,000. In 2020, the export value of dried bamboo shoots and silk was USD 21.696 mln and the import value was USD 729,000.

Value-added products

A number of companies have developed value added products other than the traditional shoots and shreds. A good example is Tiankang Green Bamboo Biological Products Co., Ltd. (Zhaoqing, Guangdong). Its main product is a beverage with bamboo shoot juice and also produces lyophilized bamboo juice powder and bamboo dietary fibre.

Peter Peverelli is active in and with China since 1975 and regularly travels to the remotest corners of that vast nation. He is a co-author of a major book introducing the cultural drivers behind China’s economic success.

Before people had fridges to keep their food for a longer period, or longer in frozen condition, mankind has invented a number of processes to make fresh produce last a little longer. However, if such processes would affect the original flavour too much or make it visually unappetising, the product would be unacceptable. So, food preservation is tightly connected with maintaining the original organoleptic aspects of the original product.

Preserved candied fruits, have been a popular snack in China for ages, known as guofu or mijian. Preserving fruits started as a way to keep summer and autumn fruits into the winter. Originally, candied fruits were treats for the imperial courts. In ancient times, emperors wanted to enjoy fruit all year around, but transportation was too slow to deliver fresh fruit to the capital from the warmer southern regions. 

The most telling story about this problem feature the most famous concubine in China’s history: Yang Yuhuan, the favourite concubine of emperor Xuanzong of the Tang dynasty (8^th century). The emperor had lychees, that Yang loved so much, delivered to the palace using the imperial courier’s fast horses, whose riders would take shifts day and night in a Pony Express-like manner. This service used to be reserved to sending urgent messages. This angered the courtiers so much, that they persuaded the emperor to have Yang killed.

Smart cooks came up with the idea of soaking fruit in honey to seal it from the air and prevent deterioration. When they consecutively tried to boil the fruit in honey, a new snack was created. As the imperial court in the last two dynasties, Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911), were located in Beijing, that city is still considered the best place for tasting a wide range of authentic and traditional preserved fruits.

The process

The main difference between preserved and dried fruit is the use of honey or sugar in the preserving process. Traditionally, preserved fruit are produced by simmering fresh fruit in honey to remove moisture. Sugar is often substituted for honey nowadays to cut production costs. Selecting the best fruit is crucial in making mijian and guofu. The fruit must be ripe but still dense enough to withstand long boiling. Different varieties have specific requirements. Apricots should be golden, with moderate hardness, while apples with low moisture content and loose flesh are best. Once fruit has been pitted and peeled, it is smoked in sulphur to prevent oxidation of the tannin. It is then boiled in a highly concentrated sugar syrup.

Not all candied or preserved fruit is sticky in texture. Though the words guofu and mijian are interchangeable, guofu is more commonly used to describe preserved fruit that is dried after boiling in sugar or honey, while mijian refers to the more juicy and glossy versions that aren’t dried after cooking. Some Chinese guofu have a thin granulated sugar coating, which is more common in southern provinces like Fujian and Guangdong.

Popular types

Yangmeigan, or candied Chinese bayberry, is made by boiling the fresh berries in sugar water, then baking the berries to remove moisture. A sugar coating is added for extra sweetness and texture. This snack is very popular, especially in Yangtze River Delta region.

Guofu and mijian are most commonly made with green plums, apricots and peaches. But the preservation process has also been extended to more unconventional ingredients, like winter gourd, ginger, water chestnuts, lotus roots and olives.

Tangjiangpian, or candied ginger, is a specialty in Changsha, the capital of Hunan Province. The recipe, which originated in the Ming Dynasty, is favoured for its sweet and spicy flavour as well as for the health benefits of ginger. For the process, fresh, tender ginger roots are rinsed, peeled and thinly sliced. Then they are tossed in granulated sugar and dried under a hot sun. The process is repeated several times until all the moisture from the ginger is gone.

The peelings of orange and grapefruit can also be made into candied preserves. The process requires separating the outer zest of the citrus from the bitter white pith. The peeling is then boiled in water and cut into thin slices, which are subsequently boiled in a syrup of equal parts water and sugar. When the peelings take on a transparent appearance, they are removed from the syrup and spread out on a flat surface to cool. Finally, they are rolled in granulated sugar. Tangerine peel is used to make sun-dried chenpi, which is used in traditional Chinese medicine and in cooking (try them when stewing beef!). In Guangdong, jiuzhi chenpi is a snack made by processing the dried tangerine peel with liquorice root and sugar.

Various preserved plums, like huamei, wumei and jiayingzi, and hawthorn berries are the most common varieties of more sour preserved fruit sold in supermarkets and convenience stores. The sourest of the huamei preserved plums is one that looks quite mummified, with white powder on a caramel-coloured surface. Made of green plums, it is infused with the flavour of liquorice, giving it a distinctive saltiness that is said to stimulate salivation.

Wumei, or black preserved plum, is less sour and a bit meatier. It is made from Chinese plums, or Prunus Mume. This variety is also an element of traditional Chinese medicine and a key ingredient in the popular summertime beverage of sour plum juice.

Dried mango; this was the most popular preserved fruit by far sold on the online platform Tmall in 2020.

Health food

A number of fruit popular for preservation is attributed medicinal activity in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Good examples are: date, tangerine peel, ginger and black plum (wumei). You can also make herbal tea from several types of preserved fruits, like tangerine peel (chenpi) tea. Preserved fruits can also be enriched with other medicinal ingredients like: dates with ajiao (a gel extracted from donkey skin), or hawthorn with probiotics.

Cooking ingredient

Guofu and mijian are often used in classic dishes such as babaofan, or eight-treasure rice, and zongzi with preserved honey dates as filling. Preserved fruits are also added to oatmeal to create a more interesting breakfast.

Modernisation: low sugar

Of course, anything dripping with sweetness comes under scrutiny in today’s health-conscious world. That’s also true of preserved fruit. In recent years, food scientists have developed production methods that use less sugar. One process uses low pressure injection of gel, e.g., algin. In this way you can use less sugar, while preserving the texture of the final product.

Peter Peverelli is active in and with China since 1975 and regularly travels to the remotest corners of that vast nation. He is a co-author of a major book introducing the cultural drivers behind China’s economic success.

Food and beverages form one of the most innovative industries worldwide. Consumers get easily bored with their daily bites and sips and feel a strong need for regular change of flavours, textures, colours, etc. The typical products with such regular changes are snacks or sodas, stuff that you eat or drink between meals, to kill part but not all of your hunger, or even purely for diversion.

When scanning the new launches in China of the past few months, another type of product clearly stands out, one that is usually regarded as a healthy food: yoghurt.

Dairy is regarded as the single most nutritious food group in China and therefore tops the current Chinese food pyramid. In particular, Chinese strongly believe that dairy products enhance the immune system, so the Covid-19 epidemic has triggered a tsunami of new dairy products during the latter half of 2020. As many Chinese still have a problem with the odour and flavour of regular milk, yoghurt is a more widely accepted dairy product among Chinese consumers. In this post, I want to introduce a number of the most noticeable newly launched yoghurts, each representing a subtype.

Yoghurt and tradition

The renewed interest in traditional culture in China is also reflected in the celebration of traditional holidays, like the Mid Autumn Festival. Although dairy is a mainly a foreign food group, several of the newly launched yoghurts in China are branded in connection with a traditional holiday. Yili has issued a limited edition of its Ambrosial yoghurt for the Mid Autumn Festival.

Beijing’s pastry maker Daoxiangcun, that does not a dairy company, has even launched a one-time Dragon Boat Festival yoghurt flavoured with mooncake, the traditional pastry eaten during that festival and of which Daoxiangcun is a main supplier.

Yoghurt and milk tea

Milk tea is a vogue that reached Mainland China from Taiwan and quickly became bigger than in its home market. Young Chinese are willing to line up for hours to get a cup of their favourite milk tea. Genki Forrest has cashed in that by launching a milk tea inspired yoghurt.

Black yoghurt

I posted an earlier introduction about various types of ‘black food’ in China. Black food is traditionally linked to health. Moreover, there is a small but stable group of young people interested in gothic music, including the black outfit that come with it. A number of black yoghurts have been launched in previous months. E.g., there is Yiming’s yoghurt coloured with inkfish ink and black sesame seeds.

Yili’s Ambrosial also has a range of black yoghurts with various funny flavours: chives, garlic, shrimp, rice vinegar, etc.

New raw materials

These are yoghurt not made from milk (or not only milk).

Tianyou has launched a Zero (zero sugar, zero additives) soybean-based yoghurt.

Beijing-based Marvelous Foods recently launched its flagship store on Tmall with its signature offering: Yeyo Coconut Yogurt with zero-added sugar, no sweeteners, or artificial flavours. The initial launch of the plant-based range includes a ‘pure’ sugar-free flavour, along with two yoghurt-granola cups with seasonal fruit and nut granola toppings and are priced at RMB 15 per 100 gr. Its latest product was developed after extensive formulation R&D by joining forces with leading ingredients company DSM.

High nutrition yoghurt

While yoghurt itself is already regarded a nutritious in China, some producers add extra nutrients. Yili has developed high protein yoghurt . . . 

. . . and one with several probiotics to enhance the functioning of the intestines.

Wahaha is selling a yoghurt drink with amino acids that promote a good night sleep.

For the opposite, to pick yourself up, you can use Mengniu’s yoghurt with arrowroot; also said to be good for curing hangovers.

Yoghurt and . . . noodles

China’s top dairy processor Yili has launched a combination pack of its Ambrosial yoghurt and Wuhan-style noodles (Cailinji brand) late 2020. It is a limited edition commerating the brave citizens of Wuhan who suffered most from the COVID-19 epidemic.

More have been launched and I expect even more will follow. I will regularly update this post with new products.

Peter Peverelli is active in and with China since 1975 and regularly travels to the remotest corners of that vast nation. He is a co-author of a major book introducing the cultural drivers behind China’s economic success.

Fruit juice has been an emerging popular beverage category in China for some time now. Fruit has a healthy image, so fruit juice drinks are easy to market as good for you, at least better than sugary soda beverages. However, even up to the present day, most fruit juice drinks for sale in China have a 5% to 10% fruit juice content; the remainder being water and a mix of the usual ingredients.

Fruit juice drinks with a higher juice content are rare in China. It was therefore a surprise to note that Not From Concentrate (NFC) juice suddenly the appeared on the Chinese market a few years ago. Still, if fruit juice is healthy, NFC should be the healthiest of them all.

The founder of Lingdu Guofang, Sun Jun, who had started his career at Mengniu Dairy, and a manager of mineral water giant Nongfu Spring jointly announced China’s first NFC juice on Food & Beverage Innovation Forum (FBIF) 2017.

In 2018, the retail sales volume of fruit juice amounted to 14 billion litres. However, only 5% were 100% juice and only 1% of that volume was NFC. The NFC juice consumption per capita in China was only 16 ml. Although the market size at present is quite small, prospects for growth are high, as was indicated on FBIF 2020.

Consumer profile

As for now, most NFC juice consumers are females, adults from 23 to 40 years old, living in the first-tier cities, and parents. White collar workers, gym-patrons and people who care about body management will be the next potential consumer groups. Getting enough vitamins, health, and flavour are the top three reasons mentioned to purchase NFC juice.

Obstacles

There some obstacles for NFC suppliers to overcome. Two thirds of Chinese consumers do not know the difference between 100% juice and NFC. Another problem is that NFC juice can be easily replaced. A 2020 Healthy Drink Research showed that a considerable part of consumers did not choose NFC juice because the can buy fruits and eat those directly. Fruits are cheap in China.

Popular beverages like bubble tea also pose a threat. Such teas with fruit juice are also marketed as ‘healthy’ and can be purchased to go. Fresh fruits can be squeezed at home. NFC is only for sale in bottles, so consumer who want to have a fruity drink while shopping, will buy a bubble tea. In June 2020, the famous tea drink brand Hey Tea also launched bottled NFC juice products in its own bubble tea shops.

Where to go

Worldwide, most fruit juice products are still single-flavoured, dominated by orange. But in China, consumers are more open to mixed flavours, or a mixed vegetable and fruit juice. Exotic fruits can be another considered.

The promotion of NFC juice shall be first focused, highlighting “NFC” on labels. Comments like “additive-free,” place of origin, health benefits, etc., are also important in China. It also very important to connect products with consumption contexts. For example, NFC juice could be the best choice for mothers in the supermarket when the kids want to buy beverages.

It would better to position NFC juice together with other health products, rather than sharing a shelf if regular fruit juice and fruity beverages.

In spite of the challenges, I am sure that NFC will grow in China in the coming years. Covid-19 has increased the already existing trend towards more healthy eating and drinking among Chinese consumers.

Peter Peverelli is active in and with China since 1975 and regularly travels to the remotest corners of that vast nation. He is a co-author of a major book introducing the cultural drivers behind China’s economic success.