On New Year's Day 2025, on his personal Douyin account, Chen Keming, founder of Kemi Food, reviewed his work over the past year. He mentioned that 2024 was a year full of passion and challenges, and that he and his team persevered, deeply cultivating the health industry and committing to the research and optimization of whole grain rice. At the same time, he stated that the team had successfully launched the fifth-generation germinated embryo rice and posted a nutritional composition comparison table. It is not hard to see that Chen Keming's statements and actions are far from his title of "Noodle King"; after his "second venture," his focus is no longer on noodles but on the rice business. Previously, an investor asked Kemi Food: "Does the germinated embryo rice product introduced on Chen Keming's Douyin account belong to Kemi Food?" The reply was, "The embryo rice product is developed by Hunan Nuoqian Health Management Co., Ltd., a company personally invested in by the company's honorary chairman, Chen Keming." In other words, Chen Keming is already the "honorary chairman" of Kemi Food, and he has indeed changed tracks. But beyond that, it is worth further asking: What kind of track is embryo rice that it can attract the "Noodle King" to enter? In this process, what achievements and challenges has he encountered?
The New Track Was Once Occupied by WeChat Business To analyze the "Noodle King's" new track, it is necessary to first understand what embryo rice is. On online platforms, netizen "Xiao Xiao Huang" has popularized embryo rice. In her view, compared to polished white rice that has undergone polishing, embryo rice is more primitive, with a purer taste, and "retains the nutrients in rice to the greatest extent." "Xiao Xiao Huang" wrote: "If you like the chewy texture of whole grains, then embryo rice is likely to become your favorite." Her words basically summarize the characteristics of embryo rice and align with professional research. A report released by China Puhua Research Institute, "2022-2027 China Embryo Rice Industry Development Trends and Investment Risk Research Report," states that embryo rice is refined rice that retains the germ part of the rice. Because it is rich in nutrients such as protein, B vitamins, minerals, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E, iron, and zinc, it is known as "nutritional gold." The report also mentions that the most important central part of rice is the germ, and the so-called "sprout" is the part that gives birth to new life. "Nutritional analysis shows that the various nutrients of rice are concentrated here, making it a treasure trove of nutrition." Because of its nutritional concentration advantage, embryo rice has gained favor among many consumers in recent years. In May 2023, a report released by CBNData showed that among surveyed individuals, 40% of first-tier city residents and post-90s preferred embryo rice when purchasing staple grains, as did 23% of those with monthly incomes between 10,000 and 20,000 yuan. The two most common reasons these groups chose embryo rice were "rich in trace elements" and "rich in vitamins lacking in polished white rice." Notably, combining the nutritional advantages of embryo rice with consumer groups, we can imagine that the price of embryo rice will not be low. Indeed, the aforementioned report by China Puhua Research Institute directly points out that "embryo rice prices are relatively high," and some media have called embryo rice the "aristocrat of rice." For example, some brands sell embryo rice for over 90 yuan per jin. To a large extent, high prices may mean larger profit margins, which once attracted WeChat business operators to chase after it. Zhang Jianfu, founder of an e-commerce platform that was once popular in the social e-commerce field, revealed that many well-known products were initially promoted by WeChat business operators—they "occupied" categories including bird's nest, seaweed, lactoferrin, diapers, baby food, and embryo rice. For example, a search by "New Consumption 101" found that in 2019, a food company claimed to have created a "new WeChat business model," which changed the traditional model by sharing planting bases and using a membership model to sell embryo rice, "allowing every member to eat low-priced, high-quality embryo rice." "Eating low-priced, high-quality embryo rice" was ultimately just a slogan. As policy regulation strengthened and consumer trust nearly disappeared, WeChat business faded away. However, the embryo rice track has not lacked newcomers, and 73-year-old Chen Keming is one of them.
Ideals Are Plump, Reality Is Skeletal Although he is a newcomer, Chen Keming has accumulated advantages that cannot be underestimated. First, Chen Keming focuses on germinated embryo rice, which involves further germinating the embryo on the basis of embryo rice. From a technical perspective, selected embryo rice is placed in an environment with specific temperature and humidity to promote germination. When the germ grows to a certain extent, its activity is locked in through specific technology, forming germinated embryo rice. During the germination process, the nutritional composition of embryo rice changes and improves. At the beginning of this article, it was mentioned that Chen Keming posted a nutritional composition comparison table for embryo rice, and he also provided detailed explanations in text. Among them, Chen Keming stated that after germination, rice can produce a variety of beneficial components, mainly including gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and the content of vitamins, minerals, and polyphenolic compounds also increases. Second, according to Chen Keming, the team "successfully improved the taste of the product, making it soft, sticky, sweet, and fragrant." In his view, this point is "more important." Why is it "more important"? It is because the public is accustomed to the taste of polished white rice, and for embryo rice, netizen "Xiao Xiao Huang" mentioned "the chewy texture of whole grains," and many consumers have also bluntly said "the taste is not good." This means that only by improving the taste of embryo rice can more consumers be attracted and retained. Third, although Kemi Food clearly stated that embryo rice is Chen Keming's personal investment, as the "Noodle King," Chen Keming has an extensive sales network and channels nationwide. He can promote germinated embryo rice to the market through cooperation with distributors and retailers. However, everything has two sides, and Chen Keming's sale of embryo rice also has significant disadvantages. In short, first, brand awareness is insufficient. Although Chen Keming is well-known in the noodle field, he is less known in the rice field, especially in the embryo rice track. Second, compared with large rice enterprises, Chen Keming's rice business has a relatively small production scale and has not yet reached the optimal cost state of scale production, which to some extent limits price advantages. As mentioned earlier, some brands sell embryo rice for over 90 yuan per jin, but this is only an isolated case. The intelligent assistant "Doubao" analyzed e-commerce platform data and found that overall, for each jin of embryo rice, prices below 10 yuan are considered low, 10-20 yuan are medium, and above 20 yuan are high. On January 7, "New Consumption 101" saw on Chen Keming's Tmall flagship store that Chen Keming's "Minggong Nuoqian" germinated embryo rice 500g (upgraded version) was priced at 59 yuan, falling into the high-price range. As a comparison, a germinated embryo rice sold at Sam's Club, originating from Jilin rice production area, emphasizing "natural rice fragrance, sweet and soft," was priced at 79.9 yuan per 5 kilograms, i.e., 7.99 yuan per jin. Not just price, the issue is also that in the eyes of the aforementioned consumer groups who prefer embryo rice, which one—Sam's Club or Chen Keming—has more influence on consumption decisions? For this question, the online sales situation of Chen Keming's embryo rice provides an annotation: On Chen Keming's Tmall flagship store, the product "Minggong Nuoqian" germinated embryo rice 500g showed "24 sold"; in the Douyin store of Hunan Nuoqian Health Management Co., Ltd., total sales were 194, and the 59-yuan-per-jin "Minggong Nuoqian" germinated embryo rice showed "3 sold," while Chen Keming's official Douyin flagship store did not even list embryo rice products. Ideals are plump, but reality is skeletal. "Deeply cultivating the health industry," Chen Keming still needs to increase his efforts.
Small Trends Cannot Resist Big Trends Objectively speaking, Chen Keming is hardworking and pragmatic in his rice business. For example, when laying out embryo rice, he targeted the key consumer group for embryo rice—families with children—and launched a sub-brand "Hui'er Si." The CBNData report showed that among consumers who prefer embryo rice, 49% are married with children, all hoping that their children can absorb more nutrients by eating embryo rice. Chen Keming's focus on germinated embryo rice undoubtedly aligns closely with this demand. More critically, these actions of Chen Keming conform to the development trend of embryo rice. Data from the beginning of the 2024 Double 11 shopping festival showed that on JD.com, the transaction amount of embryo rice increased by 3 times year-on-year, and this information was specifically highlighted as "three meals trending toward healthiness." The aforementioned report by China Puhua Research Institute also pointed out: "With the popularization of the nutritional value of embryo rice and the improvement of consumer health awareness, the embryo rice market continues to expand. Currently, the embryo rice market is mainly concentrated in first-tier cities and some economically developed regions, but with the gradual expansion of the market and the improvement of consumer awareness, it is expected that the embryo rice market will show broader growth space in the future." However, in the face of major consumption trends, the development of embryo rice is only a "small trend." It must "survive" under the big trend and cannot shine independently of it. Regarding the major consumption trend, the analysis by self-media "Mo Mo You Wen" has gained recognition from many netizens: "2025 is the era of mass consumption. The trick of labeling products with the 'middle class' tag to lead consumption trends no longer works. Increasingly savvy consumers are voting with their feet, finding the 'true meaning of life' in sincere and cost-effective consumption choices." In this context, the "aristocrat of rice" embryo rice will naturally be impacted. Specifically, Chen Keming's germinated embryo rice, whose brand is still in its infancy and whose cost-effectiveness is not outstanding, may suffer a greater impact. Perhaps for this reason, in addition to increasing efforts on germinated embryo rice, Chen Keming has not forgotten to list Northeast long-grain fragrant rice at about 5.99 yuan per jin, a lower-priced option suitable for the vast number of polished white rice consumers. The logic behind this is obvious: while seeking a bright future for germinated embryo rice, he must solidify the rice business, and more products and a wider price range are two necessary steps.
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