Mooncakes have set off a sugar-reducing revolution; health and deliciousness have become the secret to success

Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, and the traditional food mooncake has entered people's field of vision again during the annual festival. Faced with the traditional mooncakes with heavy oil and salt, how can the "low-sugar mooncakes" launched by pastry brands such as Qianji break through the siege and capture the stomachs of young people? This article analyzes the user psychology and brand marketing factors behind the strong popularity of "reduced mooncakes", and is recommended for students interested in the catering industry to read~

As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, mooncakes are coming on the market. Among various innovative concepts, low-sugar features are particularly noteworthy. As a typical representative of high-sugar and high-fat foods, mooncakes are undergoing an unprecedented health transformation. For example, brands such as Zhiweiguan, Taotaoju, and Guangzhou Restaurant have launched sugar-reduced mooncakes. Among them, the "reduced mooncake" first created by Qianji in 2019 is the most typical.

Compared with ordinary mooncakes, the sugar content of "subtraction mooncakes" is greatly reduced. At the same time, relying on superior raw materials, creative shapes and novel taste, it has won the public's praise. Sales have continued to grow for the past four years, with an annual compound growth rate of 16%. It has won the title of "Famous Chinese Cake" for four consecutive years and won the silver medal at the World Food Quality Evaluation Conference in 2022; at the same time, Qianji has also won the title of China's Top Ten Baking Brands for four consecutive years.

Image source: Qianji

Recently, Qianji's "subtraction mooncake" series has been renewed, launching two flavors: pure milk cheese mooncake and Gyokuro tea cheese mooncake. Among them, the pure milk cheese mooncake is a co-branded product of Asahi Vipshop.

Why does Qianji focus on reducing the sugar content of mooncakes? How does it find the balance between health and deliciousness? What are the differences between reduced sugar mooncakes and other sugar-reduced mooncakes?

1. Reduced mooncakes: more than just reducing sugar

"Mooncakes nowadays are so sweet that I always give them to others after receiving them."

Mooncakes are a traditional festival delicacy passed down from generation to generation by the Chinese. Every year when the sweet-scented osmanthus is fragrant and the golden wind brings cool breezes, all kinds of mooncakes with innovative concepts appear on the market. However, in recent years, the charm of Mid-Autumn mooncakes seems to have greatly decreased.

Consumers say that although the fillings of mooncakes are attractive, they are generally too sweet and seem to be incompatible with the current healthy diet concept of reducing sugar and calories. Every autumn, the topic of high calorie mooncakes will rush to the hot search on Weibo. Netizens often say that every time they receive mooncakes, they become gifts to keep in touch with each other, but they rarely have the desire to enjoy them. In view of the nutritional defects of mooncakes with "high glycemic index and high fat content", doctors also suggest that "ordinary people should not eat more than 100g of mooncakes per day".

Unintentionally, mooncakes have fallen from a traditional delicacy to an unhealthy "calorie bomb".

Image source: Weibo

As early as 2018, Qianji realized the public's demand for reduced-sugar mooncakes and came up with the idea of ​​"making a mooncake that is not sweet or greasy and is so delicious that you want to leave it for your family."

In the traditional mooncake industry that is heavy in oil and sugar, Qianji has become a rare "rebel". This mooncake has received many positive reviews from consumers as soon as it was launched. Consumers said, "This mooncake is not too sweet", "You can eat several in one go", "The ingredients are sufficient, it is both satisfying and delicious". Qianji hopes that through this subtractive mooncake, mooncakes will no longer be just a tool for gift giving, but return to the true nature of the Mid-Autumn Festival, and become a beautiful thought that can be shared with relatives and friends, so that people will fall in love with eating mooncakes.

Image source: Xiaohongshu

What exactly did Qianji do to the mooncakes?

The first is to reduce the use of sucrose. Qianji uses trehalose instead of traditional white sugar. Trehalose is a stable disaccharide and a low-calorie natural sweetener. It has been widely used in pastries in recent years.

In the second step, Qianji reduced the oil content of mooncakes and added nuts rich in high-quality fats to the mooncakes to improve the fat performance of the product.

In the third step, Qianji targeted the ingredients in mooncakes that were contrary to the concept of health, such as removing unnecessary additives and using more natural ingredients instead of processed ingredients.

Finally, Qianji’s subtraction mooncakes have a shelf life of 60 days, which is lower than other mooncakes on the market, and the shorter the shelf life, the fresher they are.

After more than a year of continuous experimentation and adjustment, Qianji was the first in the industry to launch black bean cheese mooncakes featuring the concept of "subtraction" in 2019. After that, the "subtraction mooncake" series continued to be updated and became a scene in the industry. In 2022, Qianji and OATLY launched oatmeal cheese mooncakes, adding 0 sucrose plant-based oat milk to the filling.

Currently, the reduced mooncake series has launched four Su-style mooncake items, including two classic ones - black bean cheese mooncake and red bean cheese mooncake; and two new ones - pure milk cheese mooncake and gyokuro tea cheese mooncake. Qianji also launched a gift box containing the above four flavors of mooncakes. In addition, Qianji's traditional Cantonese mooncakes have also been reduced in sugar and marked.

Image source: Qianji

In addition to subtracting from the recipe, optimization in packaging is another highlight of the subtraction mooncake.

This year, Qianji uses reduced-ink packaging and environmentally friendly soybean-based ink in the production process of small box packaging for reduced-sugar mooncakes. It also reduces the use of red, blue, and yellow inks, retaining only black monochrome ink printing, which is in line with the reduced-ink design concept and is more environmentally friendly.

Return to innocence and give you a moon

In order to make the Mid-Autumn Festival more relaxing, Qianji planned an offline event called "Walking the Moon" in September 2022. In the promotional video of the event, a beige balloon equipped with a luminous device was tied to the back of a tricycle and followed the tricycle through the streets and alleys. Due to work, most people today cannot reunite with their families during the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Qianji seized this emotional detail and lightened the mood of the festival through the "moon", winning the favor and resonance of many people.

In addition, the subtraction mooncake itself is also reducing the psychological burden of consumers when eating mooncakes. Qianji Video Account's event spread to five cities including Wuhan, Changsha, Zhengzhou, Hefei, and Hangzhou, with a total online exposure of more than 45 million, attracting multiple brands such as Erchang Soda, Markor, and Juewei Duck Neck to cooperate, becoming a model of mooncake brand marketing. The "Walking the Moon" creative activity not only significantly increased consumers' awareness and favorability of the brand, but also received praise from the industry, and the case was selected into the Meihua.com case selection. With a healthier formula and more heartfelt interaction, Qianji has created a different healthy temperament for the subtraction mooncake.

However, in the domestic food market where taste is king, excellent taste is needed as a basis for gaining long-term favor and continuous repurchase. How does Qianji make the mooncakes delicious? What are their considerations in flavor design?

2. How to create delicious sugar-reduced mooncakes by combining Chinese and Western elements?

Initially, Qianji hoped that the reduced sugar mooncakes could be a mooncake with a good taste and help reduce the burden of diet. This year, Qianji's slogan has become "reduced sugar is a good intention", hoping that the reduced sugar mooncakes can be shared with family and friends as a high-quality gift and a token of intention. In order to make this token of intention "loved by everyone", Qianji carefully polished the ingredients and flavors, reflecting the sincerity everywhere.

Image source: Qianji

Many ingredients of Qianji's "subtraction mooncakes" come from its own farms. These selected high-quality ingredients not only ensure a stable supply, but also bring advantages in flavor.

Black bean cheese mooncake and red bean cheese mooncake are two classic mooncakes with cumulative sales of over 3.5 million. The mooncake fillings are clearly layered, with selected high-quality Northeastern black beans and red beans. They have both the softness of bean paste and a clear granular texture, with the right sweetness; the inside is wrapped with New Zealand cheese, which bursts with a rich milky and bean fragrance. Qianji innovates from the traditional puff pastry and specially developed 24 layers of puff pastry, which is crispy, soft and light. With rich sugar-reduced fillings, your throat will not be dry after eating, and there will be a lingering fragrance in your mouth.

Image source: Qianji

This year, Qianji has teamed up with Asahi Vipshop to launch a mooncake that suits the tastes of the whole family - pure milk cheese mooncake.

The filling uses pure milk from Asahi Vipshop, which retains the natural flavor of milk, which is not sweet and more nutritious. A large amount of French kiri cheese is also used in the filling. The fragrant cheese and milk complement each other, fully satisfying the Chinese people's preference for mellow milk fragrance. Asahi Vipshop's brand proposition of circular agriculture and natural growth coincides with Qianji's concept of fresh baking on its own farm. This cooperation uses more natural and healthier fresh ingredients to bring consumers better quality mooncakes. Pure milk cheese mooncakes have also become Qianji's main product this year.

Image source: Qianji

In addition, Qianji is also trying to reduce the ingredients of the farm to mooncakes. Another new product this year, Yulu Tea Cheese Mooncake, uses Enshi Yulu Tea, a traditional Chinese steamed green tea, to combine the aroma of Yulu Tea with the smooth taste of cheese. It has a light and elegant aftertaste and a unique taste experience, catering to the taste preference of contemporary young people for milk tea.

Image source: Qianji

Yogurt and cheese are popular classic ingredients, widely used in all kinds of food. Qianji combines trendy Western ingredients with traditional Chinese ingredients to give the product a richer taste.

Relying on its unique health and delicious characteristics, Qianji has opened up a new path in the fiercely competitive mooncake market. What other scenery is worth paying attention to along this road? Consumer concepts are changing rapidly, and the market scenery is also constantly changing. Which scenery will continue? Will Qianji's subtraction strategy be the one that extends the furthest?

3. Innovative flavors, diverse crusts, and health first: A new look at the domestic mooncake market

In recent years, the domestic mooncake craftsmanship has been constantly innovating, developing towards a trend of diversified flavors, diversified crusts, and healthier recipes. Survey data released by iMedia Research shows that consumers are most looking forward to seeing innovations in mooncake crust, appearance, and flavors, with 65.6% of consumers preferring mooncakes with Chinese-style packaging. More and more young consumers, especially Generation Z, are becoming the main consumer group in the mooncake market.

Innovative flavors such as lava and fruit fillings are popular among the majority of Generation Z. Driven by the national trend, many brands such as Xiaoguan Tea, Forbidden City, Taotaoju, and Daoxiangcun have launched national mooncakes with Chinese tea flavors, closely following Chinese traditions. In addition to the flavors, the gift box packaging of many brands also fully demonstrates the national trend.

Image source: iiMedia Research

In terms of mooncake crust, the soft and glutinous snow skin mooncakes have become popular products of many brands. Yuanzu's snow mooncake series has achieved a double harvest of popularity and sales. Luxihe even launched peach mooncakes this year.

Image sources: Yuanzu Food, Gift from the Forbidden City, Luxi River

With the trend of healthy eating and people's improved health awareness, mooncakes are also moving towards a healthy trend with sugar reduction as the main focus. According to iMedia Research, more than 90% of consumers said they would buy mooncakes that focus on "health". However, while emphasizing health, the taste of the product cannot be ignored. Only by comprehensively considering health, taste and quality can we meet the needs of consumers and achieve market success.

Image source: iiMedia Research

Foodaily found that the number of mooncakes featuring the concept of reducing sugar has begun to increase this year, and there are also many spontaneously compiled low-sugar mooncake collections and homemade tutorials on Xiaohongshu.

Driven by consumer demands, pastry brands such as Zhiweiguan, Maxim's, and Guangzhou Restaurant have also launched various low-sugar mooncakes in recent years. In most of these mooncakes, sugar substitutes are used to replace sucrose. Among them, sugar alcohols are the most widely used. Sugar alcohols are a synthetic sweetener that has some properties of sugar. Their sweetness and calories are lower than sucrose, and they have no effect on the increase in human blood sugar levels. However, large intake of sugar alcohols can cause adverse reactions such as gas production, bloating, and diarrhea, which also restricts its application to a certain extent.

Compared with sugar alcohols, the trehalose used by Qianji can moderately improve the flavor of products, maintain the smell of aromatic substances, maintain the water holding capacity of baked goods, inhibit lipid oxidation, inhibit protein denaturation, inhibit starch aging, etc. Due to these significant characteristics, the frequency of use of trehalose in baked goods has increased year by year. Brands such as Xuanma and Xianghe Bobopu have used trehalose as the core raw material for sugar-reducing products.

IV. Conclusion

From the social media topics of heavy oil and sugar that continue to attract attention to the launch of new sugar-reduced mooncakes, 2023 is very likely to be the year of the explosion of sugar-reduced mooncakes in China. In addition to choosing safer sugar substitutes with better sweetness and processing performance, how to achieve "reducing sugar and oil without reducing deliciousness", how to let consumers feel the unique charm of sugar-reduced mooncakes, and re-examine the humanistic value and dietary value of mooncakes under the new outlook on life, it requires continuous insight and in-depth exploration of pastry brands.

After five years of hard work, Qianji has set a new health benchmark for the industry with its sincere mooncakes. Will this "good intention" of reducing sugar for the Chinese people inspire more enthusiasm for mooncake consumption? Let's wait and see!

Author: Lyra Liu

Source: WeChat public account "Foodaily Daily Food (ID: foodaily)"