Rice topping sauce, called the "rice devourer's神器" by young people, is riding the wave of its category to stir up a multi-billion yuan market. With traditional giants doubling down, emerging brands surging, and capital chasing, the rice topping sauce track is bustling with activity. Recently, the new brand Baishanzu launched its creative ad "I'm proud, I'm a 'Three No' product" on Focus Media's elevator screens, attracting young consumers and igniting a new wave of no-additive, health-conscious upgrades in the rice topping sauce category.
01 Rejecting Chemical Additives: Baishanzu Leads the Health Upgrade of the Rice Topping Sauce Category Rice topping sauce is undeniably the new windfall in the condiment market. Data shows that from 2015 to 2020, the compound annual growth rate of rice topping sauce reached 16.9%, and it is expected to hit 4.22 billion yuan by 2025. Although the overall market size is still modest, its growth rate ranks among the top in all condiment categories, with vast prospects. From a consumption perspective, with the acceleration of people's pace of life and the development of the "eating alone" and "lazy economy," rice topping sauce, with its inherent "one sauce, multiple uses" attribute, has become a new favorite on young people's tables and has already amassed a large base of loyal consumers. The market is at a peak, meaning endless opportunities but also fierce competition and battles. Based on different starting points and industry positions, rice topping sauce brands have each developed their own competitive "moves." Li Ziqi's salted duck egg yolk sauce differentiates itself from traditional rice topping sauces, standing out in the market; Haidilao's rice topping sauce mixes grains and vegetables, creating new varieties like "oat and green pepper," "green pepper and porcini," and "shallot and soybean"; Zuo Dashi takes a different path, targeting the delivery market for a "win-win" business; and Hubang, hailed as the "No. 1 internet spicy sauce," positions itself in the high-end market, partnering with delivery platforms for joint distribution. Baishanzu, a brand under Baixing Foods, on the other hand, starts from the major trend of "health" and has launched its unique "Three No" healthy sauce products—no added colors, no added preservatives, and no added chemical flavors—using organic raw materials and suitable for children, to meet the public's high demands for food health. The decision to adopt a health strategy is related to Baixing Foods' long-standing business philosophy. Baixing Foods is a national key leading enterprise in agricultural industrialization. It was among the first in the industry to process and extend the industrial chain of mushroom products, including ready-to-eat convenience foods, snacks, condiments, mushroom health foods, and edible fungus enzymes. It was also the first to introduce Japanese liquid fungus technology for factory cultivation of king oyster mushrooms and has cultivated rare fungus mycelium such as cordyceps, Taiwanofungus camphoratus, and agaricus blazei using rare domestic techniques. Its R&D center has been successively recognized as the "National Professional Center for Edible Fungus Processing Technology R&D," "Zhejiang Provincial Key Agricultural Enterprise Research Institute," and "Provincial High-tech Enterprise R&D Center," among other prestigious R&D credentials, making it one of the strongest R&D enterprises in the domestic edible fungus industry. Despite having many brands under its umbrella, Baixing Foods adheres to the "Three No" principle and its original health mission in product development and production. Its Baishanzu rice topping sauce, for instance, follows the R&D and production principle of "original flavor, natural method," striving to restore the original taste and value of fungi. Among its products, porcini mushroom sauce, shiitake and minced pork sauce, shiitake and shallot sauce, and black truffle sauce have been well-received by consumers upon launch. Baishanzu has also exported to overseas markets such as Australia, Europe, the United States, and Japan, thanks to its green health, fresh raw materials, and unique flavors. It is worth noting that Baishanzu's brand philosophy of rejecting chemical additives and adhering to the "Three No" principle is actually a category upgrade for the rice topping sauce track. Traditional rice topping sauces, due to high fat and sodium content and many food additives, were once typical representatives of "unhealthy fast food." Baishanzu's "Three No" products not only overturn the impression on the market and consumers but also lead the health upgrade of the rice topping sauce category. It is foreseeable that with Baishanzu's stirring, more organic and healthy rice topping sauce products will emerge in the future, and the table sauce track is about to enter a new stage of competition.
02 Landing on Focus Media to Ignite Regional Markets: Baishanzu Targets New Mainstream Consumers As competition in the rice topping sauce track intensifies, condiment giants and new players are using various marketing methods to attract consumers, putting considerable effort into brand promotion. Haitian has increased its trendiness by sponsoring popular variety shows like "U Can U Bibi," while the pickled vegetable time-honored brand Jixiangju collaborated with "Bao Zou Man Hua" to launch the "Bao Xia Fan" series to win over young people. Online-born internet brands like Li Ziqi, Rishiji, and Lin Yilun's "Fanye" focus on new online channels, attracting consumers through live-streaming sales and short videos. As a young brand, Baishanzu did not adopt the popular internet celebrity brand promotion strategy but chose a more certain path—shifting offline and focusing on Focus Media, the core "scene trigger button" in life service consumption. This is also related to current media development trends. With rising customer acquisition costs and the peak of traffic dividends, the precise recommendation method of traffic advertising, which "doesn't promote without promotion," is increasingly unsuitable for new brands. Finding more explosive and cross-circle marketing methods has become a new task for the newcomers. It is understood that after analyzing successful cases in the new consumption track, Baishanzu chose to cooperate with Focus Media, which currently has the strongest brand explosion effect, and launched its series of creative ads, including "I'm proud, I'm a 'Three No' product," across elevator lobbies in apartment buildings and office buildings in Hangzhou. In terms of placement strategy, Baishanzu did not opt for a blind "sprinkling flour" approach but instead used a "regional assault," "precision strike," and "point-to-area" tactic to ignite the core market of Hangzhou, laying the foundation for subsequent nationwide expansion. In this ad campaign, Baishanzu's "Three No" features, "A bit more expensive, but really much better," and "Use Baishanzu for kids' rice and noodles" are all core messages aimed at deeply communicating with the new mainstream population and consumers with high demands for food health. At the same time, Baishanzu adopts a "big single product strategy," focusing on promoting the porcini mushroom sauce as a hit product to enhance brand awareness and influence. Whether it's the health upgrade in product R&D or the regional ignition in marketing, Baishanzu's brand strategy is forward-looking and decisive. We believe that with Focus Media's saturated elevator media promotion, coupled with Baishanzu's strong channel distribution capabilities, its regional market ignition strategy will yield initial results, and brand momentum will further increase. We also look forward to this new brand, which dares to lead the industry, bringing more surprises to the sector.