In Nov. 2007, Xiamen HEK Food Co., Ltd. launched its “Guli-Guli” cereal drinks. For the time of over one year, these products have been selling well in South China due to good concepts of products, excellent technology and appropriately selected target consumers. With ordinary persons as the target consumers, “Guli-Guli” cereal drinks, combining traditions with fashions, can satisfy the consumers’ current needs for food and beverages with their convenience and economy, abundant nutrients, nice taste and good absorbability.

The Growing Cereal Drink Industry

The Chinese consumers have paid more and more attention to nourishing beverages and have particularly favored cereal drinks. According to an HEK’s inquiry, a part of the consumers have persisted in consuming the drinks of his type for years, and a group of consumers royal to “Guli-Guli” has formed and continuously expanded. Focusing on this nice opportunity, more and more beverage manufacturers have started the R&D and production of cereal drinks. Just as what Mr. Ye Zhengming, President of HEK, says, one or two manufacturers are never enough for the growth and prosperity of a certain type of beverage, it needs the joint efforts of those concerned. The discussions on prospects of cereal food in China among the manufacturers, the positive proposal of healthy dietary ideas of cereals, and more people and institutes involved in the project will certainly help to boost the development of the Chinese food industry, particularly that of cereal food represented by cereal drinks.

The involvement of more and more beverage enterprises has brought about new energy for the cereal drink market. Looking forward to making cereal drinks a beverage category with Chinese characteristics, they’re going all out to develop an industrial chain appropriate to cereal drinks.

As a leader in cereal drinks, HEK enjoys some advantages in the aspect, including the establishment of its own R&D crew and the research team and facility in conjunction with related professional university departments and institutes, and the setting up of the world’s largest aseptic packaging plant for liquid cereal food with top world-advanced processing machinery and automation control systems. At present, its annual processing capability of instant cereal food exceeds 0.4 million tons, which is about to further increase in the future.

Machinery Suppliers to Go Ahead of Consumers’ Demands 

Consumers’ higher requirements for beverages have asked the manufacturers to keep on with innovations and regulations. Mr. Ye said that an enterprise should regard technology and equipment as its essentials and bring them into play. So, machinery suppliers must go ahead of consumers’ demands and guarantee their machinery can meet the manufacturers’ technological requirement for a particular product. Mr. Ye expressed that CBST organized by CBIA has set up a good platform for the exchanges between beverage manufacturers and machinery companies. He hopes that, through CBST, machinery companies can provide more products suitable for different requirements, and beverage manufacturers can also find more easily machinery that suit their products and technologies.