Food is of primary importance in life. Whether it is takeout that fills up delivery scooters, office workers’ daily order of coffee and milk tea, or hot pot that has gone viral both home and abroad, food delights the tongue and cheers people up.

SIAL holds that such an ordinary thing as food could have a strong leverage.

According to the latest data, in 2023, China's catering revenue passed the 5 trillion yuan barrier for the first time, setting a historic record. With the faster rebound of contact-type and aggregation-type consumption such as catering and accommodation, consumption has re-emerged as the main driving force of economic growth.

Dine-in suspension, stagnation of capital flow, rising costs...... All these interwoven difficulties drive catering industry, which can best represent the hustle and bustle of daily life, in straits. Despite the cumulative increase in revenue from 4.67 trillion yuan in 2019 to 5.29 trillion yuan in 2023, the catering industry has gone through ups and downs. How did the industry survive and rise from its predicament?

Innovation helps. The rise of bakery, tea-based drinks and ready-made dishes reinforced by the adoption of remote and online ordering, and the trend of low-fat and health diet accelerate into the new mode of combining catering with tourism, exhibition, performance and IP. Though the environment is changing, the step of innovation remains steady. Diversified service modes, intelligent services, healthy products and innovation continue to add to the people’s list of choice.

Catering industry is relevant to cooking and farming, and it can be seen throughout food supply chain which creates many different jobs. A piece of bread, a bowl of noodles, a dish ...... accompanied by field produce into the city, into the store, on the table, the farmers' "money bags" bulging, good day "fire" up.

The work of a restaurant, for example, in addition to that of chefs, waiters, involves purchasing, transportation, marketing, planning, food research and development and other types of work. The report shows that on average, every 10 square meters of restaurant business area can provide a job. China's catering industry has nearly 30 million directly employed.

From the supply of raw materials, agricultural development, to social employment, domestic consumption, in 2023, the catering industry drives the revenue of agricultural and sideline ingredients, food processing industry and other related industries up to 2 trillion yuan, greatly promoting China's economic recovery.

Some people say that the only thing in the world that can't be discouraging is love and food. Food is not only a necessity of life, but also a cultural heritage. The ups and downs in life has given us a deeper love for food culture.

SIAL echoes that view. The eight major cuisines of Shandong, Sichuan, Guangdong, Suzhou, Fujian, Zhejiang, Hunan, Anhui include all the kinds of numbing, spicy, salty, fresh, fragrant, sweet flavor. River snails rice noodles, Kung Fu Tea, Teochew dishes, Shaxian snacks are all popular national food business card. Rich and diverse catering culture exudes the people's love of life. Dishes of Chinese cuisine are not only reflection of the hustle and bustle of daily life but also booster of consumption.