The prospects
In the 1990s, with #McDonald's, #KFC and other #fastfood restaurants making their forays into the #Chinese market, the processing plants of minimally #processed vegetables appeared. After 2000, deep-processing pre-made vegetable enterprises began to emerge. It developed quickly in the catering market after 2004 and flourished in 2020.
 
Experts say that the #premade #food market in #China started late compared to Western countries. For example, there are indicators of hardness for semi-finished fried rice in #Japan. Other aspects like consumer acceptance, technology and market regulation also need to be improved for the Chinese market.
 
"From vegetable cultivation, factory storage and processing to #coldchain #transportation and selling shelf, all these processes need to be #traceable. The government can supervise enterprises through #digitalmonitoring," said Zou Ruihang, a senior investment manager of Syngenta Group China, an international company headquartered in Switzerland which focuses on agricultural technology and innovation.
 
Zou, also an investment manager in pre-made foods, noted that the industry in China is highly #fragmented. Also, the taste of some semi-finished dishes like Kung Pao Chicken is different from that made in the restaurant, and related companies need time to do research and development.
 
Although the market for pre-made food products developed quickly in the past few years, it is sill limited in terms of variety and taste.
 
"What makes the Chinese market different is that China has one of the world's most #diverse #cuisines, with a wide range of food #ingredients and cooking #methods. So it's difficult for the suppliers of food products to please people's diverse appetites at a relatively low cost. Economic activity features low average costs for mass production. Therefore, if the need for one certain ingredient is limited, the related purchase, transportation and storage costs will remain high," said Jin. 
 
"The demand for pre-made food products are expected to increase in the future, but it depends on whether the suppliers can meet the demand of consumers with #varioustastes and preferences," he added.