The Mid Autumn Festival is approaching. On the mooncake street in Wulanchabufeng Town, Inner Mongolia, more and more people and businessmen come and go day by day. In addition to the vehicles from local and surrounding cities, there are also many vehicles from Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong and even Beijing passing through the streets. It is normal for mooncakes to be sold here during this period of time to select one by one, purchase one by one, and ship one by one.

Du Haizhen, the head of Fengzhen Haifaxiang Food Co., Ltd., told reporters that the business of mooncakes was good this year, and the sales volume also increased. "The majority of merchants who purchase from the mooncake street are from Hubaoe and other surrounding areas, and most of them choose traditional flavor mooncakes, such as rock sugar, honey, red dates, etc." Du Haizhen said.

Fengzhen City is under the jurisdiction of Ulanqab City, located in the south central Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, bordering Hebei Province and Shanxi Province, and is the foothold of many merchants. Fengzhen mooncake originated in Longsheng Village, an ancient town. The high heat brought by the mixture of oil, sugar and flour, together with the characteristics of long-term storage in a cool and dry environment, make it a necessary dry food for Mongolian merchants who travel on the ancient Tea Horse Road to resist cold and hunger. The name of Fengzhen mooncake is also widely spread in the north.

Liu Wenjun, a resident of Fengzhen Town, is busy not only buying mooncakes for his family, but also buying gift boxes for relatives and friends from other places. "According to our custom here, on the evening of the Mid Autumn Festival, we should hold a ceremony to worship the moon at home. Buy some moon cakes and fruits, and place a table on the balcony to worship the moon." Liu Wenjun told reporters that there are many more varieties of moon cakes in Fengzhen now than in the past, and people have more choices. "Older people like traditional tastes, and children prefer new varieties".

In recent years, Fengzhen City has expanded the scope of brand publicity and expanded the domestic and foreign markets by organizing and holding moon cake cultural festivals, online marketing, participating in exhibitions and other forms, and the popularity and reputation of Fengzhen moon cakes have been constantly improved. In 2015, Fengzhen mooncake was awarded the certification trademark of national geographical indication. In 2017, Fengzhen Moon Cake was awarded the title of "Top Ten Snacks in China" by China Cuisine Association. In the 6th Moon Cake (Food) Culture Festival in Fengzhen City, which opened on July 30 this year, the sales of Fengzhen Moon Cake reached more than 6 million yuan in just five days.

During this period, Fengzhen mooncakes also sold well at Haipeng Snack Shop in Wanda Square, Jining District, Ulanqab City. According to baker Wang Zhichao, this 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 various cakes. During this period of time, cakes are basically not produced, and we mainly promote moon cakes, which sell well, with a daily sales volume of 10000 yuan. Especially the newly developed beef jerky moon cakes are very popular."

Li Meng, a citizen of Jining, is a "post-90s" generation. For her, mooncakes are not only consumed on the Mid Autumn Festival. When she doesn't want to cook in the morning, Fengzhen mooncakes with a bowl of milk tea are a good breakfast, and can also be used as night snack at night. "Fengzhen mooncakes are affordable and convenient to purchase, and have become an indispensable part of people's life."

There are many enterprises making moon cakes in Jining District, and Jiashi Food Co., Ltd. is one of them. "Although the mooncakes we make cannot be officially called" Fengzhen mooncakes ", they are all mixed sugar mooncakes with similar manufacturing process. The traditional practice is that there is no stuffing, and the main ingredients are oil, sugar and noodles. For more than 30 years, people have recognized it. " Li Xiaobo, the person in charge of the company, said that although the cost of raw materials for making mooncakes has risen recently, the company still insists on keeping the price of mooncakes unchanged.

For Li Qiang, the general manager of Inner Mongolia Enbao Food Co., Ltd., the sales pressure of mooncakes this year is higher than that in previous years. "It's also 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 consumer feedback we have learned that some non local consumers are not very receptive to the taste of linseed oil in traditional Fengzhen mooncakes, so we have developed targeted new varieties of mooncakes such as cheese and silk drawing," said Li Qiang.

At present, there are more than 200 large and small mooncake production and sales enterprises in Ulanqab, 2 enterprises above designated size, and 14 enterprises settled in the mooncake production industrial park. In recent years, the average annual sales volume of Fengzhen mooncakes is about 150 million to 200 million pieces. The main markets are concentrated in central and western Inner Mongolia, northern Shanxi, Beijing and other places, with an annual sales volume of about 500 million yuan, which has formed a certain industrial foundation.

Wei Zhong, chairman of Fengzhen Haipeng Food Co., Ltd. and chairman of Fengzhen Moon Cake Industry Association, introduced that in recent years, the category of Fengzhen Moon Cake is increasing, the sales method is more yuan, the sales cycle is longer, and the industry has a good development momentum. "In addition to being the seasonal food for the Mid Autumn Festival, Fengzhen mooncakes have also started to be sold as a gift, becoming a characteristic card representing Fengzhen and even Ulanqab." However, Wei Zhong also said that there are still problems in the industry, such as insufficient innovation, serious homogenization competition, and fierce price war. At the same time, the sales scope of mooncakes is relatively limited. "We hope that all parties can work together to promote the healthy and orderly development of Fengzhen mooncake industry."

The reporter learned from the Bureau of Commerce of Ulanqab that Ulanqab will take the mooncake production and sales enterprises authorized by the "original Ulanqab" regional public brand as the starting point, further strengthen the publicity and promotion, expand 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 R&D investment, enrich product categories, and meet the consumption needs of different consumer groups.

Various styles make people love

Our reporter Liu Cheng

"There are too many flavors of moon cakes this year, which are all eye-catching!" In front of the moon cake shelf of Liqun Supermarket, Changjiang Road, Qingdao West Coast New Area, Liu Xue, a citizen of the new area, is full of harvest, holding various moon cake gift boxes in his hands.

With the Mid Autumn Festival approaching, mooncakes have entered the peak sales season. The reporter visited many supermarkets in Qingdao West Coast New Area and found that they had set up a special area for mooncakes, with cartoon signboards such as "Jade Rabbit" and "Full Moon" beside the shelves, and a thick atmosphere of Mid Autumn Festival was everywhere. In the mooncake sales area, the merchants are more ingenious. They not only launched various flavors of mooncakes for different consumer groups, but also launched their own featured flagship products, making adequate supply preparations for citizens' Mid Autumn Festival consumption.

When you enter Liqun Supermarket on Changjiang Road, you will directly see the moon cake shelf area. Royal Mobil, Daoxiangcun, Guangzhou Restaurant... Mooncakes of different brands from all over the country are neatly placed on four shelves, surrounded by customers who come to buy mooncakes. "We are very confident about the influence of traditional festivals. This year, the price of gift box mooncakes is mainly within 200 yuan, and there is a great demand from customers. The sales of mooncakes are expected to exceed 600000 yuan, an increase of about 10% year on year." Guo Shumin, the sales manager of Liqun Supermarket on Changjiang Road, pointed to the mooncake gift box beside.

In addition to various brands, this year's mooncake tastes are also "advancing with the times", rich and diverse. On the basis of the traditional Cantonese style moon cakes and Soviet style moon cakes, the merchants also launched new flavor moon cakes, such as semi cooked cheese, French strawberry flow heart, ice skin durian, and zero sugar moon cakes for the elderly. "The mooncakes in bulk are of new taste, so I want to try them myself when I buy them. The gift box can be used to visit relatives and friends, and it is beautifully designed." Liu Xuebian said while selecting mooncakes.

Also eye-catching is the "Three jin Mooncake" launched by Qingdao Shengkelong Shopping Mall, an old local enterprise in the new area. When we came to the processing plant in Shengkelong, the reporter saw that, with the roar of the machine, the pastry chefs orderly poured the white bean paste, flour, raisins, rose petal sauce, pumpkin kernel, sesame and other food materials into the mixer in turn to make the filling, and then completed the production and baking of the cake crust. One by one, the characteristic big moon cakes with full color and fragrance were made. "The" three jin mooncake "is our first product in the local market. Its output accounts for about 60% of all our mooncake series. On average, nearly 10000 mooncakes are sold every year." Said Wang Xiaokun, manager of Qingdao Shengkelong Food Co., Ltd.

Out of the factory, the reporter came to the Renmin Road store in Shengkelong Shopping Plaza. There are a lot of people in front of the mooncake goods area, and many customers are attracted by the "three jin mooncakes". "The implication of the big moon cake is very good. It symbolizes the family's reunion, and the old people in the family specifically asked them to buy it!" Xue Li, a citizen of the New Area, bought 10 boxes at once. She said that every year she would buy "three jin big moon cakes" for 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, they could sell more than 1000 "three jin mooncakes" in one store alone. Shengkelong Shopping Plaza has also opened an online sales channel, and mooncakes can be sold as far as the three eastern provinces and Hainan. On the packaging of moon cakes, Shengkelong strictly implements the latest national standards to control costs, cut down the complexity and ensure the delicacy at the same time.

With the consumption of Mid Autumn Festival becoming more rational, DIY mooncakes are also favored by the general public.

In the DIY moon cake classroom of Qingdao Angel Fragrance Food Co., Ltd., there is a happy atmosphere of Mid Autumn reunion. Many parents are taking their children to make "exclusive" moon cakes under the guidance of bakers - some use peach peel as the cake crust, and add hawthorn powder, matcha powder, etc. to make them 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 about whether to use a blessing bag or a small animal shaped mold... "The moon of the Mid Autumn Festival is particularly round, and Chang'e and Jade Rabbit live on the moon, so I chose a small rabbit shaped moon cake." Wang Haonan, a first grade child who followed his parents to experience DIY moon cakes, showed the "rabbit" moon cake in his hand.

"The original purpose of this mooncake class is to let customers not only buy delicious mooncakes, but also make them as a symbol of reunion. Many customers may not have been exposed to DIY mooncakes before. Making them by hand can give them a sense of freshness and achievement. It is also meaningful to give them as gifts to their families, so that they can spend a different Mid Autumn Festival. ”Said Zhuang Jing, founder of Qingdao Angel Aroma Food Co., Ltd.

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