Author: admin

The 2025 International Supply Chain Conference of Chinese Cuisine, hosted by Wuhan Liangzhilong Food Inc., concluded successfully today in Guangzhou. The conference brought together nearly 200 representatives from over 100 supply chain platforms and chain restaurant brands, as well as 17 industry associations from around the world.

This milestone event marks a new chapter in the global expansion of Chinese cuisine and lays out an unprecedented strategic roadmap for advancing Chinese food supply chains on the international stage.

A Golden Era for Chinese Cuisine Going Global

“Chinese cuisine is entering a new phase of systematic and large-scale development,” stated Zhu Changliang, CEO of Wuhan Liangzhilong Food Inc. and founder of the Liangzhilong China Food Ingredients E-Commerce Festival, during his keynote address.

He emphasized that while the global expansion of Chinese cuisine presents unprecedented opportunities, it also faces significant challenges. These include insufficient integration across supply chains, leading to unstable ingredient supply and persistently high costs. Additionally, substantial differences in food standards, regulations, and cultural norms across countries and regions have made the international rollout of Chinese cuisine both complex and demanding.

He further emphasized, “For the Chinese cuisine supply chain to succeed globally, we must first master the fundamentals and adopt a long-term mindset.”

According to relevant data, the overseas Chinese cuisine market reached RMB 3 trillion in 2024. Over the past three years, the global Chinese dining sector has grown at an average annual rate of 11%, and it is projected to exceed USD 1.2 trillion this year. Currently, there are approximately 700,000 Chinese restaurants operating overseas, with more than 6,000 new establishments added in the first half of 2025 alone.

These figures clearly underscore the unprecedented growth opportunities emerging for Chinese cuisine in international markets.

“Why is Chinese cuisine able to thrive sustainably? Because it is a fusion of tradition and innovation,” said Steven Johnsons Tjan, CEO of Indonesian restaurant chain PT Petarung Semeja Sejati.

He noted that Chinese cuisine enjoys widespread popularity in international markets. His restaurant group, for example, offers a variety of fusion dishes inspired by Chinese cuisine. By innovating flavors and adopting localized strategies, they have successfully attracted diners from around the world.

In March 2024, China’s Ministry of Commerce, together with eight other government departments, jointly issued the Guidelines on Promoting High-Quality Development of the Catering Industry, which explicitly called for accelerating the global expansion of Chinese cuisine. This policy-level support has created strong momentum for Chinese food to “go global.”

However, taking Chinese cuisine abroad is far more complex than simply “sending well-made dumplings overseas.” At its core, a robust supply chain is essential—not only to ensure quality, but also to drive the standardization, internationalization, and scalability of Chinese cuisine.

“Chinese cuisine is entering a golden era of global expansion, and the supply chain is its foundation and soul,” said Zhou Wen, Secretary-General of the Ingredient Supply Chain Subcommittee of the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Foodstuffs, Native Produce and Animal By-products.

He emphasized that the stability and adaptability of the food ingredient supply chain are the driving forces enabling Chinese cuisine to shift from simply “going global” to achieving sustainable and long-term international success.

“You can’t hide an elephant behind a sapling—Chinese cuisine is that elephant,” said Wu Li, Vice President of the World Federation of Chinese Catering Industry. He emphasized that the international expansion of pre-prepared and pre-packaged Chinese foods, such as ready-made meals, is a key achievement of China’s food industry revolution and will not be hindered by outdated perceptions.

“Guangdong is a place where miracles happen. It was the first to enact legislation supporting the development of the pre-prepared food industry,” Wu noted. As the birthplace of China’s pre-prepared food sector, Guangdong has taken the national lead in systematically building out the industrial chain, firmly positioning itself as an industry front-runner. With its unique strengths, Guangdong is well placed to become the spearhead of China’s food industry on the global stage. Wu expressed hopes that the province would become a symbol of success for the international expansion of China’s pre-prepared food systems.

Challenges Remain on the Journey Ahead

As global demand for Chinese cuisine continues to rise, shortcomings in the international supply chain have become increasingly evident. According to Zhou Wen, the key hurdles facing Chinese cuisine’s global push can be summarized as three major challenges: lack of ingredient standardization, insufficient supply chain resilience, and difficulty in cultural adaptation.

For example, overseas markets impose diverse and often complex standards on food ingredients, and some traditional Chinese ingredients currently fail to meet export requirements due to processing limitations. In addition, high cross-border logistics costs and extended shipping times disrupt the consistency of supply. Finally, the localization of Chinese flavors to suit foreign palates requires strong capabilities in ingredient R&D and product adaptation—posing significant demands on suppliers seeking to compete globally.

Fortunately, a number of pioneers have emerged along the path of international expansion. Addressing the challenge of ingredient standardization, Dai Chenyu, Chairman of Baizhentang Biotechnology Co., Ltd., emphasized that only under standardized processes can food safety be maximized while also delivering nutritious and flavorful products.

Taking the company’s edible broth concentrate as an example, he explained that the entire production process—from simmering and processing to packaging—is fully automated and streamlined. The company has also taken the lead in developing industry standards for edible broth under the guidance of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Dai believes that by leveraging deep industry expertise, a strong focus on technology, and an open approach to industry collaboration, the long-standing challenges of standardizing Chinese cuisine can be effectively overcome.

In addressing supply chain resilience, Shi Jingjing, Executive President of Panda Go Global, identified three critical factors: localization, compliance, and digitalization.

To localize ingredient sourcing, the company has built a dual-track procurement system, combining core ingredient imports with locally sourced alternatives to achieve effective ingredient localization. On the compliance front, efforts focus on food import registration and labeling standardization to meet the regulatory requirements of each target market. In terms of operations, the adoption of digital supply chain management, supported by local collaboration and technological enablement, has significantly enhanced overall supply chain resilience.

Addressing the challenge of cultural adaptation, Li Qiuguang, General Manager of Zhaoqing Evergreen Aquatic Product Science & Technology Co., Ltd., stressed the importance of adapting to local conditions.

“Different countries have different food standards,” Li noted during a roundtable discussion. “For example, some markets prohibit additives derived from animal products. That means flavor enhancers like chicken essence or lard can’t be used in international versions of our products.”

He also highlighted the importance of aligning branding with local culture. “For instance, when developing fish fillet products for overseas foodservice clients, we created a boneless product line to better resonate with local consumer preferences. These localized adaptations help drive stronger market acceptance.”

Overcoming the “Three Major Challenges” Doesn’t Guarantee a Smooth Landing

Successfully navigating the “three major hurdles” does not mean the journey is complete—far from it. According to He Guifen, Head of the Compliance Services Center at FoodPartnerNet, regulatory compliance remains a significant challenge for Chinese food companies going global.

For example, product compliance is a key concern: in markets such as Indonesia and Malaysia, Halal certification is required for many food products. In terms of compliance within the broader food-related supply chain, the United States does not require mandatory certification for food contact materials, but companies must still provide declarations of conformity to ensure product compliance.

“From another perspective,” He added, “regulatory compliance shouldn’t be feared. While it may represent a substantial upfront cost for going global, overcoming these challenges ultimately becomes a source of long-term competitive advantage.”

Four Key Trends Draw Industry Attention

From 2020 to 2024, the global Chinese cuisine market grew from RMB 227.548 billion to RMB 359.385 billion, and it is projected to reach USD 577.682 billion by 2030, showing a steady upward trajectory.

At the conference, Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd., presented the 2025–2030 Market Outlook and Development Trends Report on the Global Expansion of Chinese Cuisine, which drew significant interest from attendees.

According to the report, four major trends are shaping the international development of the Chinese cuisine industry: localized integration, standardized management, international marketing, and digital operations. As a result, the global Chinese cuisine industrial chain is becoming increasingly robust and refined.

How Should These Trends Be Interpreted? Insights from Industry Experts Provide the Answer.

“Ingredient localization and direct resource connection are critical to the global expansion of Chinese cuisine,” said Zhu Dong, Vice President of Liangzhilong Group and General Manager of its International Business Division. He pointed out that the key challenges currently facing Chinese cuisine going global include localized integration, supply chain bottlenecks, and brand awareness.

Zhu emphasized that these challenges can be effectively addressed through measures such as localized ingredient sourcing, establishing local manufacturing facilities, and developing overseas warehouses, all of which support the integration of Chinese cuisine into local supply chains.

“Standardized management is essential for scaling and strengthening the Chinese cuisine supply chain,” added Li Qiuguang. He shared that Evergreen began implementing standardized processes early on while undertaking the Egypt Fisheries Industrial Park project. This included standardizing parameters for aquaculture techniques and production formulations.

The company sent Chinese technical experts to provide on-site guidance and hands-on training for local staff. Through continuous fieldwork and collaboration, the project successfully achieved full standardization in management and operations.

In Terms of International Marketing, AI Is Becoming a Strategic Enabler

Li Liaoyuan, Founder of Future Island AI, highlighted the importance of an AI-driven internationalization strategy, emphasizing a two-step approach: first exporting the brand, then exporting the product.

He explained that brand globalization can be accelerated by leveraging AI tools to increase brand visibility. This includes launching localized marketing initiatives and building new media accounts tailored to international audiences. Once brand awareness is established, the focus can shift to product globalization, which also relies on AI technologies for market adaptation and operational efficiency.

Xu Dandan, Head of Merchant Development for the Southern Guangdong Region at Alibaba International, echoed this perspective. She noted that companies are using AI-powered business assistants to automatically respond to inquiries from overseas buyers, enabling real-time, multilingual communication. This ensures that merchants capture high-quality leads and drive efficient, high-value international expansion.

Zhong Tianjiao, Founder of 41Caijing, emphasized that the global expansion of Chinese cuisine requires more than just product standardization and supply chain support—it urgently needs the establishment of an international communication system built on multilingual cultural translation, localized content co-creation, and visual storytelling.

She pointed out that media relations are one of the core driving forces behind Chinese cuisine going global. Effective media engagement helps Chinese culinary brands build trustworthy, narrative-rich, and widely shareable brand assets—transforming “flavor” into a story of people and culture. This shift enables Chinese cuisine to move beyond simply exporting dishes toward exporting values and culture, facilitating genuine global integration and elevating brand positioning on the world stage.

Digitalization: A Key Trend in Chinese Cuisine’s Global Expansion

The importance of digital management in the global push was also highlighted. Yao Yang, Rotating CEO of Technology at Pagoda Group (Shenzhen Pagoda Industrial Group Co., Ltd.), shared that the company has adopted a fully digitized supply chain management system, enabling highly efficient operations and minimal waste throughout the entire value chain.

By leveraging precise sales forecasting, logistics coordination, and a trusted handover system, Pagoda has significantly improved delivery efficiency while reducing operational costs. Additionally, the company uses big data for risk control and innovation planning, creating a closed-loop management model that links sales planning with harvest scheduling. This approach enhances both the integrity and quality of the product chain, offering valuable real-world insights for the digital management of food exports.

Media Contact
Company Name: Wuhan Liangzhilong Food Inc.
Contact Person: Ms.Wang Jue
Email: Send Email
Country: China
Website: www.lzlchinafood.com