To be the "pillar" of industry development has become the "favorite" of consumers

Reporter Gu Yufei

Technology upgrading serialization, raw material development diversification, characteristic flavor nationalization.
.
.
In the past year, under the guidance of the big food concept, the convenience food industry has continuously tried to break the development bottleneck, broaden the development path, and give full play to its excellent production capacity advantages, showing strong resilience and vitality
in the special period 。 Entering a new era, the convenience food industry will usher in new challenges, the market will return to rationality, costs rise profits, capital intervention brings new "play".
.
.
Facing the future, how can the industry crack the pressure and maintain concentration? During the 22nd China Convenience Food Conference held recently, Sun Baoguo, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, chairman of the Chinese Society of Food Science and Technology, and president of Beijing Technology and Business University, and Huang Guosheng, president of China Food News, co-chaired the convenience food industry leaders forum, inviting representatives of the convenience food industry such as Master Kong, Jinmailang, Sanquan Foods, and Unified Enterprise to jointly study and judge the development goals and consumer needs under the new situation, talk freely about enterprise development ideas, share innovative practical experience, and look forward to the future.
Driving the industry to a new era
.

Constantly innovate categories to meet the escalating consumer demand with high-quality supply

As an important sector of the food industry, convenience food has won market recognition
with its deliciousness, safety and convenience.
However, with the continuous improvement of living standards, people have more expectations for convenience food, and only delicious, safe and convenient is no longer enough to support the vitality of the
industry's eternal development.
"Convenience food companies should meet the escalating consumer demand
with high-quality supply.
" Huang Guosheng said
.

Chen Yingjang, CEO of Master Kong Holdings Limited, said that the epidemic has changed people's perception of convenience food consumption scenarios and consumption concepts, and under the call of the era of high-quality development, the convenience food industry is also accelerating transformation and upgrading and value enhancement, taking traditional Chinese food culture as the root, constantly updating flavor, constantly improving nutrition, and constantly innovating categories, so that convenience food has gradually become an important force
leading the new trend of diet 。 Talking about how to better meet the different needs of consumers, Chen Yingrang said: First, strong segmentation, around the segmented population and scenarios, strengthen category innovation; The second is to emphasize quality, actively promote digital food safety, improve risk early warning capabilities through AI big data analysis, build a traceable supply chain, and strictly control every link from farm to table; The third is to be healthier, catering to the trend of the health industry, focusing on flavor, and improving the health, nutrition and safety connotation of products with scientific proportions to meet consumers' needs for balanced nutrition and healthy diet; The fourth is to be younger, catering to the new, strange and special needs of young consumer groups, from products, tastes to marketing, playing with young people and deepening communication
with Houlang.
"As a member of the industry, Master Kong advocates happy eating and a better life, insists on growing together with the industry, actively promotes nutritional flavor innovation, meets the needs of different consumers with a diversified product matrix, and is committed to providing healthy, nutritious, safe and delicious products, contributing to the construction of a healthy China
.
" Chen Yingrang said
.

"The real value of innovation is not to meet the existing needs of consumers, but to lead new needs
by creating new categories.
" In the view of Fan Xianguo, chairman of Jinmailang Food Co.
, Ltd.
, meeting the escalating consumer demand cannot only follow consumers, but go ahead
of consumers.
"Imamaro began the research and development of zero-fried healthy noodles very early and has never stopped, and the fifth generation of zero-fried ramen fans launched this year can better meet consumers' demand
for 'a bowl of healthy and good noodles'.
At the same time, Jinmairo actively expands the track and explores the model of 'fried noodles + 0 fried healthy noodles + family prefabricated noodles', which is a microcosm
of Jinmailang predicting consumption trends and resonating with the pulse of the times.
Fan Xianguo said that the way of business, product is king, not all innovation can win the future, to choose the right track, not limited to the old road to compete, in order to truly enter the hearts of
consumers.

Chen Xi, president of Sanquan Foods Co.
, Ltd.
, believes that whether a product can meet consumer demand
can be judged by the repurchase rate.
"Based on this, Sanquan Foods focuses on 'solutions in the scene' and has developed many new categories such as 'air fryer series' and 'breakfast series', requiring each product to be delicious, healthy and affordable, so as to obtain a high repurchase rate
.
"

For the concept of food health, Zhong Hongguang, executive director of Jiangzhong Food Therapy Technology Co.
, Ltd.
, has a unique understanding that healthy food is not only good quality, good technology, low fat and low sugar, but also should help
human health.
"But consumers are becoming more and more picky, and only products that are both healthy and delicious can win the favor
of consumers.
" Zhong Hongguang said frankly that the two are equally important, and only by truly achieving the dual orientation of deliciousness and health can we meet the needs of
consumers.

Play a leading role in driving the industry to restart its growth model

In recent years, driven by various factors such as consumption upgrading, emergency stockpiling, and the pursuit of efficiency, the market space of convenience food has been further opened up and the volume has been expanding
.
At the same time, the repeated epidemic, the increasingly complex international environment, and the prominent risks of the industrial chain and supply chain have made the industry face great challenges and uncertainties
.
Academician Sun Baoguo pointed out: "In this context, while stepping on the 'road to the test' in the new era, leading enterprises should also actively play a leading role, strive to create industry value, and drive the industry to restart the growth model
.
" ”

"In the face of the changes of the times, convenient food enterprises should make efforts to scientific and technological innovation and jointly promote the transformation and upgrading
of the industry.
" At the same time, drive upstream and downstream industries to work together to achieve sustainable development
.
Chen Yingrang believes that on the one hand, it is necessary to use the Internet of Things, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and other technologies to promote the digitalization of the whole chain of food nutrition, R&D and manufacturing, production and marketing decisions, and promote the high-quality development of the industry; On the other hand, it is necessary to actively implement sustainable development strategies, reduce carbon emissions from production links such as raw materials, processing, packaging and logistics, and make consumers' tables greener
.
Chen Yingrang introduced that in recent years, Master Kong has actively implemented the "Digital China" strategy, promoted the whole link to reduce costs and increase efficiency, and refined operations; Carry out comprehensive carbon emission projects, set environmental targets, and reduce CO2 emissions by 173,000 tons
per year through the exhaust gas recovery and renovation project of steamers and oil pot chimneys.

In the past two years, the prefabricated vegetable track has been hot, attracting a lot of capital to enter the market
.
"Of course, it is good to be sought after by capital, but capital can only be used as a help
.
" Chen Xi explained that the maturity of a category, the real dependence is still "craftsmanship", the selection of raw materials, the development of formulas, processing and production and other links need to be polished with the spirit of craftsmanship, only to achieve standardization and modernization, the industry can achieve sustainable development
.

"In fact, for most quick-frozen food companies, pre-made dishes are just a new formulation of
a product.
The so-called entry into the prefabricated vegetable track is at most a new category, and the original marketing channels, logistics distribution, brand promotion and other practices of the enterprise can be directly grafted into the prefabricated vegetable sector
.
Zhang Qingmiao, president of Anjing Food Group Co.
, Ltd.
, said that for quick-frozen food enterprises, there are five advantages in entering the prefabricated vegetable track, including product selection advantages, explosive product creation capabilities, supply chain advantages, channel advantages and brand promotion advantages, but there are two major shortcomings, insufficient experience in dish production and insufficient ability to industrialize and transform dishes
.
At present, the B-end of the prepared vegetable industry has completed its penetration, is in the development period of the industry, and the C end is in the industry introduction period, and quick-frozen food enterprises need to do their homework to enter the prefabricated vegetable track, including strategic positioning, category positioning, channel positioning, etc.
, to jointly promote the industry to mature
.
”

Adhere to the "three forces" to ensure the stable and healthy development of the industry

Talking about how to create value in an uncertain environment, Liu Qitai, General Manager of the Public Affairs Office of Uni-Enterprise (China) Investment Co.
, Ltd.
, proposed that we should adhere to the "three forces" - continuous innovation of product capabilities, continuous improvement of operational capabilities, and prudent and agile organizational capabilities
.
"At present, due to the macro environment, the cost of raw material procurement is high, this situation may continue for a period of time, so that food enterprises must do a good job of the 'three forces', adapt to changes in the environment, and make more effective responses to ensure the stable and healthy development of
the industry.
"

As a foreign-owned enterprise that has been working in the Chinese market for many years, General Mills, which operates well-known food brands such as Häagen-Dazs and Wan Chai Pier, once again proved the resilience
of its China business.
"Despite the many challenges we have encountered under the pandemic, we expect high growth overall, which is also in line with our expectations
.
" Qiu Zhaoxiang, president and managing director of General Mills (China) Investment Co.
, Ltd.
, said that convenience food has long been no longer a "record" in consumers' refrigerators, and it has gradually integrated into people's three meals a day and has come to the table
.
In the future, what enterprises need to do is to make efforts in scientific and technological innovation to empower the modernization and development of
the industry.

"The biggest change in the noodle industry in the past year has been the change
in channels.
Chen Keming Food uses supermarket chains as the main sales channel, and the rapid rise of live streaming and community e-commerce has made us feel the pressure
.
Chen Hong, general manager of Chen Keming Food Co.
, Ltd.
, said frankly that the company's marketing expenses in online channels are not low, but they have little effect
.
Referring to the successful cases of other brands, we have realized that a good product must not only have a competitive advantage in technology and quality, but also have a competitive advantage
in brand and culture.
Maintaining the original intention and tapping the brand value and cultural value of the product can not only help enterprises release their development vitality, but also help the transformation and upgrading
of the industry.
”

"Large-scale and high-end is the development trend of the noodle industry, and it is also the development opportunity
of noodle enterprises.
" Wei Yanchao, general manager of Hebei Jinshahe Noodle Industry Group Co.
, Ltd.
, said that scale puts forward higher requirements for the management level of enterprises, and enterprises need to vigorously promote production line automation, intelligence, energy saving and consumption reduction; High-end puts forward higher requirements for the product research and development capabilities of enterprises, enterprises should actively explore high-end market segments, can take traditional food culture as the entry point, excavate and develop new products
.
"In recent years, in terms of large-scale and high-end development, there have been many excellent cases in the industry, and many excellent enterprises have emerged, and the development path of the industry has been continuously broadened, showing good development potential
.
" Wei Yanchao said
.

Academician Sun Baoguo said in the summary of the forum that the participating entrepreneurs presented a profound and rational strategic thinking
on the future development of the industry from different fields and their respective perspectives.
At present and in the next three or five years, the convenience food industry will also face great pressure, challenges and uncertainties, and how to create industry value in this context is an important topic
that needs to be faced and in-depth studied by industry enterprises.

Preliminary review: Li Song Responsible editor: Zhang Jiazhen Review: Peng Zonglu