Retailing helps Yunnan food gain popularity

From health-oriented to fresh-and-good taste, young people who seek cost performance in products, are now exploring regionally distinctive local fresh milk brands, tracing the source of milk for the fresh taste.

Data of Meituan, an online platform of dining service, shows that from October to November this year, the total search volume for local fresh milk on Dianping, another online platform of dining service, increased by 54.3% year-on-year, with Kunming ranking as the city with the highest search volume.

Among them, the search volume for the Yunnan regional dairy brand Zhadian Fresh Milk on Meituan increased by 54.9%, and the sales of a single product on a certain e-commerce platform surged by 200% in 7 days.

Yunnan's distinctive fresh milk, with its freshness in every sip, has become a new favorite among young people, gaining popularity through local retail platforms.

Zhadian town of Yunnan province's Gejiu city, known as the Tin Capital of China, introduced a batch of dairy cows 70 years ago, starting dairy farming and milk production. It has become one of the earliest milk production bases in Yunnan.

Today, it is a well-known milk town in Yunnan, reviving local consumption through the milk plus economy. Products like Zhadian fresh milk are gradually entering the national market through local retail platforms.

"For me, the uglier the packaging of Yunnan local fresh milk, the purer the raw materials are. The bigger the bottle, the higher the cost-effectiveness," said Miss. Long, who was on a business trip from out of town.

Local specialties can be bought on Meituan, and they were delivered in just over half an hour. Thanks to recommendations on Dazhong Dianping, she specifically chose to transfer in Kunming to bring local specialties back home.

Moreover, other dairy products made from local milk have become online-famous beverages.

Mr. Guo, a local resident in Kunming, told reporters, "Many tourists who come to Kunming specifically want to have some fermented glutinous rice in fresh milk."

Many consumers use local retail platforms such as Meituan and Dazhong Dianping to learn about Yunnan's special beverages. Some even go to remote places like Yunnan's wet markets, old streets, and small shops to find special tastes. And this injects vitality into these remote stores like Zhadian fresh milk bar.

Leveraging local retail platforms, Yunnan's local specialty products continue to capture the hearts of young people.

However, Yunnan not only has fresh milk but also fresh fruits and vegetables. To taste flowers in spring, eat mushrooms in summer, enjoy fruits in autumn, and to eat vegetables in winter, are four things that visitors can do in Yunnan all year round.

Yunnan's cuisine has characteristics for every season. As a base for transporting southern vegetables to the north and eastern vegetables to the west, Yunnan sells nearly 70% of its vegetable products to over 150 cities nationwide every year. Through Meituan Youxuan, Yunnan's local vegetables, praised as fresh with morning dew, are rushed to tables around the country.

Data shows that from January to September this year, Yunnan's online retail sales of agricultural products reached 48.4 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 51.47%.

Source: China Daily; trans-editing by Wang Yunya