A school trip by 11 children from the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region to the chilly north last month has unwittingly opened the nation's eyes to homegrown food products assumed to be specialty imports.
Dressed in bright orange puffer jackets to shield themselves from the cold in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, the children, ages 3 to 6, attracted media attention and were dubbed the "Little Sugar Oranges".
Seizing on the publicity opportunity, the Guangxi regional government sent locally grown sugar oranges to Harbin as a gesture of gratitude. In return, Heilongjiang generously sent 100,000 boxes of fresh cranberries to the region.
Many Chinese netizens were surprised to learn that Heilongjiang produced cranberries, triggering an online hunt for specialty foods grown and produced in China.
From caviar originating from Zhejiang province's Qiandao Lake to crabs from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and grain-fed beef produced in Dalian, Liaoning province, they found a plethora of culinary gems.
Thanks to advances in farming and agricultural technology, China's food producers are also trying out new production areas. Olive oil from Wudu district in Longnan, Gansu province, for example, is not only sold around the world, but has also won gold medals in international produce contests. And wine from Shangri-La in Yunnan province recently topped wine critic James Suckling's China Top 100 Wines 2023 list.
High-end products such as foie gras and caviar are also gradually breaking through geographical and price barriers and reaching ordinary people's dining tables.
Last month, the online platform Taobao shared a report on hidden local specialties. Gansu and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region are now churning out white shrimps, while Anhui, Sichuan, Yunnan and Fujian provinces are becoming known for their whiskeys, the report said.
Caviar exports
One-third of the global caviar market's total supply comes from Zhejiang, with Hangzhou Qiandaohu Xunlong Sci-tech Development Co the main provider.
"Our 'Kaluga Queen' brand caviar has approximately 35 percent of the global market share and we are the supplier for the first-class cabins of airlines such as Lufthansa, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines," said the company's general manager, Xia Yongtao.
The caviar, harvested from river sturgeon, has been selected by numerous Michelin three-star restaurants in Paris and New York and has also been served at international events such as the Oscars ceremony and the G20 Summit banquet in Hangzhou, Zhejiang.
"Since our establishment, our goal has been to export caviar because it's in high demand internationally," Xia said. From the first jar produced in 2006, Kaluga Queen caviar has gradually penetrated international markets. The company now exports to 45 countries and regions.
"We showcase the quality of our caviar at seafood exhibitions in Europe and invite French experts to our factory for inspections and guidance to help us produce even more delicious caviar," Xia said.
The company's aquaculture output ranks first globally, and Xia said they have plans to expand. "Our goal is to capture over 50 percent of the global market share in the next five years," he said.
Ninety percent of annual Kaluga Queen caviar production is for export, while the remainder is sold in China. Over the past 20 years domestic caviar sales have increased steadily, reaching 100 million yuan ($13.9 million) in 2023, Xia said.
"The domestic market still has tremendous potential. At the moment, most high-end restaurants in China favor Kaluga Queen," Xia said. His next step is to expand the product into more midrange restaurants while continuing online sales, allowing more people in China to enjoy high-quality caviar.
"Through Tmall, our caviar goes straight from the source to the table, allowing consumers to enjoy it at a much lower price than in Michelin-starred restaurants. Our annual sales on Tmall now exceed tens of millions of yuan," he said.
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