The appeal of traditional moon cakes

(Baonghean) -Not too fussy in form, without a massive advertising campaign, but currently traditional moon cakes produced by reputable establishments in the province are being sought out and chosen by many consumers because of their reasonable prices.

While high-end mooncakes produced using modern technology by famous brands such as Kinh Do, Bibica, Dong Khanh, Bao Minh, etc. are sold on the market several months in advance, traditional mooncakes produced by establishments in Nghe An province such as Huong Phuc, Bao Ngoc, Thanh Cong, etc. only appear 10-15 days before Mid-Autumn Festival. Although somewhat "picky" with customers, mooncakes produced by hand in the province still have relatively stable sales because they appeal to consumers' psychology, do not use preservatives, retain traditional flavors and are more reasonably priced than high-end cakes imported from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Mr. Bui Sy Duong - Director of Hung Duong Company Limited, owner of Bao Ngoc bakery, said: In the current period of escalating raw material prices, if the customers' psychology is not hit, the cakes produced by the establishments in the province will hardly be able to compete with big brands. Therefore, food hygiene and safety quality and prices suitable for customers' budgets are always factors that the cake production establishments in the province are interested in and consider this as an opportunity to promote their brand, not too much emphasis on profit. In addition to the ingredients for making cake fillings such as jam, lotus seeds, meat, green beans, sticky rice, eggs... are all processed on-site, without using preservatives and chemical sugar, the traditional moon cakes produced by outsourcing also attract customers, especially children, with diverse shapes such as pig's nest symbolizing reunion, abundance, carp looking at the moon, moon, round sticky rice cake couples, square baked cakes symbolizing heaven, earth... full of tradition.

The cake filling is made on site.


Thanh Cong Moon Cake Oven.


Produced at Thanh Cong bakery.
At Bao Ngoc cake shop on Nguyen Van Cu street, Ms. Nga - Nghi Phu commune (Vinh city) said: "Every year for Mid-Autumn Festival, I choose traditional fish-shaped mooncakes for my family's tray. Although the designs and prices of big brands are quite eye-catching and the quality is more delicious, I still choose cakes produced by establishments in the province to ensure food hygiene and safety while being affordable. Besides, I also want my children to enjoy the taste of traditional cakes, and at the same time understand better the meaning of Mid-Autumn Festival."

To expand the market and increase competitiveness, in addition to 3 agents and headquarters, Bao Ngoc also rented a web address on Google called Nghe An Bakery to promote its products.

Although it is a new establishment separated from the Huong Phuc cake brand for more than a year, Thanh Cong Bakery also offers the 2011 Mid-Autumn Festival cake season with 13 types of baked cakes weighing from 100-300g, 7 types of sticky rice cakes, 7 types of high-end boxed and hand-carried cakes weighing from 300.1.0000g with names such as Vinh Hoa Golden Moon, Thanh Tu Golden Moon, Golden Carp... the prices are also rich and relatively soft. Baked cakes cost from 10-50 thousand VND/piece; sticky rice cakes from 30-50 thousand VND/piece. High-end boxed and hand-carried cakes cost from 60-300 thousand VND/box depending on the weight.

Mr. Minh - Director of Thanh Cong Food Processing and Trading Company said: due to the increase in input material prices such as sticky rice, green beans, lotus seeds, although cheaper than big brands in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, in general, processed moon cake products have increased by about 10-20% compared to previous years.

In the past 5 years, along with the development of economic life, the demand for buying moon cakes as gifts has also increased, so some cake production establishments such as Huong Phuc have boldly invested in designs, styles and opened agents and display booths in many localities in the province, but the quantity is still limited. Each traditional cake brand in the area has a certain number of customers and is loyal for a long time. The fact that there is no mass production, always keeping the traditional flavor and not using preservatives is also the attraction for more and more consumers to choose moon cakes baked from traditional bakeries right in the locality instead of choosing high-end cakes produced by modern technology.

Khanh Ly – My Ha