Across China: Packaged nostalgia evokes development of mooncake industry

A baker arranges freshly baked mooncakes at a workshop in Hepu County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2024. (Xinhua/Lin Qibo)

NANNING, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- As the eighth month on the Chinese lunar calendar unfolds, mooncake factories in Hepu County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, were swept up in the bustling flurry of their busiest season of the year.

The workshops were filled with a delightful aroma as distinctive big mooncakes were freshly baked after undergoing several processes. The delectable treat is essential for celebrating the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Sept. 17 this year.

On this cherished day, family members and relatives gather to admire the full moon while savoring mooncakes.

Hepu is renowned for its mixed nuts and roast pork mooncakes, especially those weighing over 500 grams. In 2018, the Hepu big mooncake was recognized as a geographical indication (GI) product by national authorities.

Hepu's mooncake industry has experienced remarkable growth in recent years, with 124 mooncake production enterprises currently in operation. By 2023, the industry's output value soared to 2.2 billion yuan (about 310 million U.S. dollars), providing jobs for more than 7,000 people.

The mooncake town in the county is a characteristic industrial park centered on mooncake culture, with baking as its leading industry, which is now home to 19 mooncake production companies and over 90 supporting businesses across various sectors.

"We started preparing the filling ingredients right after the Dragon Boat Festival in June and produced nearly 300 tonnes this year," said Chen Haifeng, general manager of Hepu Yijiaren Food Co., Ltd., which moved into the mooncake town in 2017. Thanks to the introduction of automated production equipment, his factory has managed to save nearly half of its labor costs.

In the company's packaging workshop, the baked mooncakes from the production lines were neatly packaged into elegant gift boxes before being swiftly packed into cartons destined for various regions across China.

Chen bent down to check each box of his product while guiding workers to hasten the shipment process. As the festival draws nearer, his phone buzzes incessantly with inquiries for mooncake orders.

To cater to the evolving tastes of consumers in recent years, the mooncake factories have unveiled a range of innovative varieties -- mooncakes filled with rich durian or purple yam, wrapped in dessert-like crusts with an ice cream-like texture.

"New-style mooncakes account for 40 percent of our total output and are very popular among younger generations," Chen said.

In 2023, the total output value of the whole industrial chain of the mooncake in the themed industrial park reached 9.18 billion yuan, promoting collaborative development in farming, planting, food processing, printing and packaging, and logistics, among others, contributing to rural revitalization.

"Relying on the mooncake town, family workshops have transformed into factories capable of standardized and large-scale production, witnessing a steady increase in output," said Chen Ping, director of the Hepu Industrial Park Management Office, adding that currently, Hepu is enhancing the brand image of its big mooncakes by integrating the baking industry with cultural and tourism projects. ■