Mid-Autumn Moon Cake Fancy ＂Powder Suction＂
Traditional tastes are sought after.
Our reporter Yu Jian
As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, there are more and more citizens and businessmen coming and going in the Mooncake Street in fengzhen city, Wulanchabu, Inner Mongolia. In addition to vehicles from local and surrounding cities, there are also many vehicles from Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong and even Beijing. The selection of plates, the purchase of boxes and the shipment of cars are the normal conditions for the sale of moon cakes here during this period.
Du Haizhen, head of fengzhen city Haifaxiang Food Co., Ltd., told reporters that this year’s mooncake business is good and the sales volume has also increased. "The merchants who purchase from the moon cake street are mostly in the surrounding areas such as Hubao’ e, and most of them choose traditional moon cakes, such as rock sugar, honey and red dates." Du Haizhen said.
Fengzhen city, which belongs to Wulanchabu City, is located in the south-central Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, bordering Hebei Province and Shanxi Province, and is the foothold of many merchants. Fengzhen moon cakes originated in Longsheng Village, an ancient town. The high heat brought by the mixing of oil, sugar and flour, combined with the characteristics of long-term storage in a cool and dry environment, makes it a necessary dry food for travelers who travel long distances on the ancient tea-horse road to satisfy their hunger, and the name of Fengzhen moon cake is also widely circulated in the northern region.
Liu Wenjun, a resident of Fengzhen, is not only busy buying moon cakes for his family these two days, but also buying moon cake gift boxes for relatives and friends from other places. "According to our custom here, on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival, Yue Bai ceremony will be held at home. Buy some moon cakes and fruits, put a table on the balcony and worship the moon. " Liu Wenjun told reporters that there are many more varieties of moon cakes in Fengzhen than in the past, and everyone has more choices. "Older people like traditional tastes, and children prefer new varieties."
In recent years, fengzhen city has expanded the scope of brand promotion and expanded the domestic and foreign markets by organizing moon cake cultural festivals, online marketing, participating in exhibitions and other forms, and the popularity and reputation of Fengzhen moon cakes have been continuously improved. In 2015, Fengzhen Mooncake was awarded the National Geographical Indication Certification Trademark. In 2017, Fengzhen Mooncake was awarded the title of "Top Ten Famous Snacks in China" by China Cuisine Association. At the 6th Moon Cake (Food) Culture Festival in fengzhen city, which opened on July 30th this year, the sales of moon cakes in Fengzhen reached more than 6 million yuan in just five days.
During this period, Fengzhen moon cakes were also selling well in Haipeng Dim Sum Shop in wanda plaza, Jining District, Wulanchabu City. Wang Zhichao, a baker, said that this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival sales season came earlier than in the past, and people began to take action at the end of August. "In addition to making moon cakes, we also make all kinds of cakes here. During this time, cakes were basically not produced, and mooncakes were the main products, which sold very well, with daily sales reaching 10,000 yuan, especially the newly developed beef jerky mooncakes were very popular. "
Tommy, a citizen of Jining, is a post-90s generation. For her, mooncakes are not only consumed in the Mid-Autumn Festival, but when she doesn’t want to cook in the morning, Fengzhen mooncakes with a bowl of milk tea is a good breakfast and can also be used as a midnight snack at night. "Fengzhen moon cakes are affordable and convenient to buy, and have become an indispensable part of people’s lives."
There are many enterprises making moon cakes in Jining District, and Jiashi Food Co., Ltd. is one of them. "Although the moon cakes we make cannot be officially called ‘ Fengzhen moon cake ’ However, the production process is similar, and they all belong to mixed sugar moon cakes. Traditionally, there is no stuffing, and the main materials are oil, sugar and noodles. For more than 30 years, everyone is more recognized. " Li Xiaobo, the person in charge of the company, said that although the cost of raw materials for making moon cakes has risen recently, the company still insists that the price of moon cakes will not rise.
For Li Qiang, general manager of Inner Mongolia Enbao Food Co., Ltd., the pressure of mooncake sales this year is greater than in previous years. "It is still because the market competition is more intense." In Li Qiang’s view, understanding consumer demand is an important way to attract more consumers’ attention. "From the consumer feedback we have, we know that some foreign consumers can’t accept the taste of flaxseed oil in traditional Fengzhen moon cakes, so we have developed new varieties of moon cakes such as cheese drawing." Li Qiang said.
At present, there are more than 200 large and small moon cake production and sales enterprises in Wulanchabu, 2 enterprises above designated size and 14 enterprises settled in the moon cake production industrial park. In recent years, the average annual sales volume of moon cakes in Fengzhen is about 150 million to 200 million. The main markets are concentrated in the central and western Inner Mongolia, northwestern Shanxi, Beijing and other places, with an annual sales volume of about 500 million yuan, which has formed a certain industrial base.
Wei Zhong, chairman of fengzhen city Haipeng Food Co., Ltd. and president of fengzhen city Mooncake Industry Association, said that in recent years, the categories of mooncakes in Fengzhen are increasing, the sales methods are more yuan, the sales cycle is longer, and the industry has a good development momentum. "In addition to being a seasonal food for the Mid-Autumn Festival, Fengzhen moon cakes have also begun to be sold as a gift, becoming a characteristic business card representing Fengzhen and even Wulanchabu." However, Wei Zhong also said that problems such as insufficient innovation, serious homogenization competition and fierce price war still exist in the industry, and the sales scope of mooncakes is also limited. "I hope that all parties can work together to promote the healthy and orderly development of the moon cake industry in Fengzhen."
The reporter learned from the Wulanchabu Municipal Bureau of Commerce that Wulanchabu will take the mooncake production and sales enterprises authorized by the "original Wulanchabu" regional public brand as the starting point, further increase publicity and promotion, broaden the mooncake sales channels, and polish the golden signboard of "Fengzhen Mooncake". At the same time, relying on relevant industry associations, guide enterprises to increase investment in research and development, enrich product categories, and meet the consumption needs of different consumer groups.
A wide variety of styles make people love.
Our reporter Liu Cheng
"This year’s moon cakes have too many flavors, and they are all eye-catching!" In front of the moon cake shelves of Liqun Supermarket in Changjiang Road, West Coast New District of Qingdao, Liu Xue, a citizen of the new district, was full of harvest, carrying all kinds of moon cake gift boxes in his hands.
With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, mooncakes have also entered the peak season of sales. The reporter visited a number of supermarkets in the West Coast New District of Qingdao and found that each family has set up a mooncake area. Cartoon signs such as "Jade Rabbit" and "Full Moon" are placed next to the shelves, and there is a strong Mid-Autumn Festival atmosphere everywhere. In the mooncake sales area, merchants are even more ingenious. They not only launched mooncakes with various flavors for different consumer groups, but also launched their own specialty flagship products, which made sufficient supply preparations for citizens’ Mid-Autumn Festival consumption.
When you walk into Liqun Supermarket on Changjiang Road, you will see the mooncake shelf area directly. Royal Mobil, Daoxiang Village, Guangzhou Restaurant … … Moon cakes from different brands all over the country are neatly placed on four shelves, and the shelves are surrounded by customers who come to buy moon cakes. "We are confident in the influence of traditional festivals. This year, the price of gift box moon cakes is mainly concentrated in 200 yuan, and the customer demand is great. The sales of moon cakes are expected to exceed 600,000 yuan, a year-on-year increase of about 10%. " Petra Kwok, sales manager of Liqun Supermarket on Changjiang Road, pointed to the mooncake gift box nearby.
In addition to various brands, this year’s mooncake tastes are also "advancing with the times" and rich and diverse. On the basis of traditional Cantonese-style mooncakes and Soviet-style mooncakes, the merchants have also introduced trendy mooncakes such as semi-cooked cheese, French strawberries and durian with ice skin, and zero sucrose mooncakes for the elderly. "Bulk is a new flavor of moon cakes, buy back and want to try it yourself. The gift box can be used to visit relatives and friends, and it is well designed. " Liu Xuebian said while selecting moon cakes.
Also eye-catching, there is the "three pounds of big moon cakes" launched by Qingdao Shengkelong Shopping Plaza, a veteran local enterprise in the new district. When I came to Shengkelong’s processing factory, the reporter saw that with the roar of the machine running, the pastry chefs orderly poured white bean paste, flour, raisins, rose petal sauce, pumpkin kernels, sesame seeds and other ingredients into the blender to make fillings, and then completed the production and baking of the cake crust one after another, and finished the production of one big moon cake with full color and fragrance. “‘ Three catties of moon cakes ’ It is our first product in the local area, and its output accounts for about 60% of all our moon cake series, and it can sell nearly 10,000 pieces every year on average. " Wang Xiaokun, manager of Qingdao Shengkelong Food Co., Ltd. said.
Walking out of the factory, the reporter went to Renmin Road Store in Shengkelong Shopping Plaza. The front of the moon cake goods area is crowded, and many customers come here because of the "three pounds of moon cakes". "The meaning of the big moon cake is particularly good, symbolizing that the family is round and round, and the old people at home deliberately want to buy this!" Xue Li, a citizen of the new district, bought 10 boxes. She said that she would buy "three pounds of big moon cakes" every year for her relatives and friends in her hometown to taste.
According to Yang Zongli, manager of Renmin Road Store in Shengkelong Shopping Plaza, before and after the Mid-Autumn Festival, only one of their stores can sell more than 1,000 "three pounds of big moon cakes". Shengkelong Shopping Plaza has also opened online sales channels, and moon cakes can be sold as far as the three northeastern provinces and Hainan. In the packaging of moon cakes, Shengkelong strictly implements the latest national standards to control costs, simplify the complexity and ensure exquisiteness.
With the increasingly rational consumption in Mid-Autumn Festival, DIY moon cakes are also favored by the general public.
In the DIY moon cake classroom of Qingdao Angel Aroma Food Company, there is a cheerful atmosphere of Mid-Autumn Festival reunion, and many parents are taking their children to make "exclusive" moon cakes under the guidance of bakers — — Some use Taoshanpi as cake crust, and add hawthorn powder and matcha powder to make it appear in different colors; Some are busy filling with red bean paste, golden leg black truffle, salted egg yolk and other ingredients; Some are still struggling whether to use a blessing bag or a mold in the shape of a small animal … … "The moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival is particularly round, and Chang ‘e and Yutu live on it, so I chose the moon cake in the shape of a rabbit." Wang Haonan, a first-grade child who followed his parents to experience DIY moon cakes, showed the "rabbit" moon cakes in his hand.
"The original intention of our mooncake class is to let customers not only buy delicious mooncakes, but also make mooncakes symbolizing reunion by themselves. Many customers may not have been exposed to DIY moon cakes before. Making moon cakes by hand can give them a sense of freshness and accomplishment. It is also meaningful to give them to their families as gifts, so that they can spend a different Mid-Autumn Festival. " Zhuang Jing, founder of Qingdao Angel Aroma Food Company, said.