1. Breaking News! Dali Foods Issues Another Price Increase Notice! The Unstoppable Price Hike Wave – Please Stock Up Urgently! After the price increase of Dali Lehu in August, Dali Foods Group recently issued another price adjustment notice. Due to rising costs of raw materials, packaging, freight, labor, and increasing market expenses, the company's operating costs have risen. After comparing the current price systems of major competitors in the Chinese market and conducting scientific market research, the company decided to adjust prices for some of its products. The price adjustment will take effect on September 10 (see the branch price notice for the specific new price system). With the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival, National Day, and Spring Festival peak seasons, we remind distributors to stock up reasonably to reduce operational risks.
  2. Weilong Issues Statement Against 'Unqualified Inspection' Incident Recently, the Hubei Provincial Food and Drug Administration published a food safety supervision sampling inspection announcement. Among 643 batches of 11 categories of food sampled, 622 batches passed, and 21 batches failed. Among them, Weilong was found unqualified as follows: Nanzhang County Dongfang Tiantianle Shopping Plaza sold small gluten (spicy flavored seasoned flour product) produced by Luohe Pingping Food Co., Ltd. and commissioned to Luohe Weilai Food Technology Co., Ltd. (production date/batch: 2018-01-19). The detected value of sorbic acid and its potassium salt (calculated as sorbic acid) was 0.307 g/kg, while the standard requires it not to be used; the detected value of dehydroacetic acid and its sodium salt (calculated as dehydroacetic acid) was 0.180 g/kg, while the standard requires it not to be used. The inspection institution was the Hubei Provincial Food Quality and Safety Supervision and Inspection Institute. In response, Weilong issued a statement on September 4, strongly refuting the 'unqualified inspection' What do you think of Weilong's statement?
  3. Junlebao Cheese Yogurt Sales Exceed 200 Million Packs in First Year On September 4, Qu Dianjun, Vice President of Junlebao Group and General Manager of the Low-Temperature Business Unit, revealed at the first anniversary strategy conference of Junlebao Cheese Yogurt that since its launch in July last year, sales have exceeded 200 million packs in one year, accounting for 82% of the national cheese yogurt market. In the future, Junlebao Cheese Yogurt will also have an annual production capacity layout of 400,000 tons. According to Qu Dianjun, Junlebao's 'Zhang Zhishi La' yogurt took two years to develop, relying on global resources and multiple R&D platforms such as Junlebao's national-level laboratory, and underwent more than 3,600 formulation experiments before finally creating a product that suits Chinese tastes. Nielsen data shows that 'Zhang Zhishi La' currently holds an 82% market share in the cheese yogurt category, and it is expected that monthly sales will exceed 100 million yuan in September this year. Peter L Nilsson, CEO of internationally renowned supplier Ecolean, said at the meeting that over the past year, orders for Junlebao 'Zhang Zhishi La' packaging have exceeded 200 million packs, making it the largest single-product packaging procurement volume among all Chinese customers.
  4. Bottled Water Landscape Changes Again! Ditching Master Kong, Ganten Enters Top Three! Three years of three leaps, Ganten has once again rewritten the bottled water market landscape. According to the latest Nielsen data, Ganten has jumped to third place in the bottled water market with a 9.6% market share, while Master Kong ranks fourth with 9.3%. This is also the first time Ganten has surpassed Master Kong, entering the first tier of bottled water. The Chinese bottled water market landscape is: Nongfu Spring ranks first with a 26.4% market share, C'estbon ranks second with 20.9%, Ganten ranks third with 9.6%; Master Kong ranks fourth with 9.3%, followed by Ice Dew and Wahaha in fifth and sixth places, with shares of 8.8% and 6.6% respectively. The six major bottled water giants occupy 81.6% of the bottled water market, and the monopoly pattern is difficult to shake.
  5. Canned Wine Is No Longer Just a Niche Trend – This Business Is Now Worth $45 Million Although canned wine accounts for only 0.2% of total wine sales, this rapidly growing business is hard to ignore – according to Nielsen, from June 2017 to June 2018, canned wine sales in the United States rose by 43%, exceeding $45 million. Canned wine is a small-packaged wine that has become popular in the US-dominated wine consumer market over the past three years. Because it is easy to carry, does not require a bottle opener, and is usually cheaper, it is suitable for outdoor gatherings, parties, and other occasions, and is thus favored by young consumers. Well-known brands include Sofia, Lila, Underwood, Barefoot, and others. For example, E. & J. Gallo Winery's brand Barefoot produced more than 12 million cans of canned wine in 2017, with sales growth exceeding 30% this year; another brand, Dark Horse, which mainly produces rosé canned wine, also saw sales grow by 38% this year.
  6. Tencent Joins Forces with Yonghui to Expand Home Delivery Business – Community Fresh Food Delivery in as Fast as 30 Minutes On September 4, Yonghui and Tencent for the first time showcased their new home delivery business model 'Yonghui Life Satellite Warehouse' to the outside world. This business covers a 3-kilometer delivery range around communities, with delivery in as fast as 30 minutes, and fresh food SKUs accounting for over 50%. It is reported that the Yonghui Life Satellite Warehouse is currently being explored and operated in Fuzhou. Reporters learned that the Yonghui Life Satellite Warehouse is a full-temperature-zone smart warehouse, with an area of 300-600 square meters, about 3,000 selected SKUs, and fresh food accounting for over 50%. The satellite warehouse implements two deliveries per day for replenishment to ensure freshness and sufficient supply. After users place orders through the Yonghui Life APP or mini-program, the Yonghui Life Satellite Warehouse fulfills the order, providing delivery to home within 3 kilometers in as fast as 30 minutes.
  7. Gu Xiaojiu and JD.com Reach Strategic First-Launch Cooperation, Launching 'Colorful Edition' Small Bottle Liquor On September 4, Gu Xiaojiu announced a strategic first-launch cooperation with JD.com. The 'Gu Xiaojiu Colorful Edition' small bottle liquor series was first launched on JD.com on September 4, with both parties targeting the online small bottle liquor market. The series includes five products: China Red, Star Blue, Sunshine Yellow, Fairy Green, and Space Purple, brewed by the original Wuliangye joint venture distillery using sorghum, rice, glutinous rice, wheat, and corn, supplemented by ancient methods of making koji, solid-state fermentation, and other processes. At the same time, JD.com will also open up resources including big data, platform promotion, after-sales, and logistics to carry out multi-dimensional, all-round cooperation with Gu Xiaojiu, providing strategic-level support. Currently, Gu Xiaojiu completed a 30 million yuan angel round financing in March 2018, jointly invested by ZhenFund, CICC Huicai, and Wangxin Capital.
  8. Suning.com First Launches Nongfu Spring 'Forbidden City Bottle' Online Not long ago, Nongfu Spring did something big, launching multiple 'Forbidden City Bottle' products. It is reported that there are 9 types of 'Forbidden City Bottles' this time, all based on portraits of figures. If you don't look closely at the packaging, you might think it is full of historical weight, but if you look carefully, you will find that this limited edition product still exudes the familiar 'Nongfu Spring' flavor. It is reported that Nongfu Spring's Forbidden City Bottle was fully launched on the Suning.com platform on September 1. Search for 'Forbidden City Bottle' on Suning.com to bring it home immediately.
  9. Beijing's 'Unmanned Convenience Stores' End Without Customers? Foreign Media: Still in the Ascendant According to Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao website on September 3, the 'unmanned convenience store' trend that emerged in Beijing in 2017 quietly subsided just a year later. Many convenience stores did not achieve the expansion expected by the outside world, and some have even closed. Consumers interviewed believe that unmanned convenience stores cannot compete with supermarkets in terms of product types and prices, and the smart technology used is cumbersome and complex, not bringing more convenience. Experts believe that unmanned convenience stores have not disappeared or faded from view, but have transformed from hot news into a new business format that retail and e-commerce industries are all trying to explore.
  10. Dedicated to Those Striving on the Internet in 2018, Saluting Your Entrepreneurship and Persistence! -END-