Baisun Food, a Chinese instant noodle maker with nearly 30 years in the business, has captured social media attention with products such as its cilantro-flavored noodles. But as consumers increasingly look beyond convenience for better taste, quality and nutrition, the company is seeking to reinvent a familiar staple through product innovation, rigorous quality control and global expansion.
In a recent interview with Xinhua Finance, Xu Qing, vice president of Baisun's R&D center, said consumer feedback is the starting point for every new product. The company's ability to turn popular flavors into lasting hits, he said, rests on a comprehensive R&D system spanning flavor research, recipe development, consumer testing and standardized production.
-- How consumer feedback created a noodle sensation
"Many netizens said beef noodles would taste even better with cilantro. Our team quickly picked up on the idea and decided to develop a cilantro-flavored noodle product with a beef-based broth," Xu said, explaining how the product came about.
"Cilantro is a particularly polarizing ingredient," he said. The challenge was to get the balance right -- using just the right amount of cilantro to complement, rather than overpower, the beef broth.
Before taking the product to physical stores, Baisun first tested it on online retail platforms, Xu said. The response was encouraging, with consumers showing strong interest and a high rate of repeat purchases. That gave the company the confidence to launch the product nationwide through offline retail channels.
The combination of online testing and nationwide retail expansion helped turn the noodles into a breakout hit.
But product development does not stop at launch. Baisun continues to gather consumer feedback on everything from spiciness to saltiness, using the insights to fine-tune recipes and ensure its products appeal to a broader range of tastes.
Xu cited the experience of several friends who had previously shunned cilantro but changed their minds after trying the noodles. They found the flavor much milder than expected, with the cilantro and beef broth blending harmoniously. Some even went on to buy the product in bulk.
The popularity of the cilantro noodles also points to a broader shift in consumer preferences. As expectations for convenience foods rise, consumers are looking for more than just a quick meal. They increasingly value taste, health and nutrition, as well as the emotional satisfaction a product can bring, Xu said.
"Consumers around the world today are increasingly willing to pay for the emotional value a product offers," he said. Ultimately, however, the product must deliver a sense of value for money and make consumers feel that the price is worth paying.
-- Beyond seasoning: the science behind flavor innovation
The key to developing products that appeal to consumers' tastes lies in understanding the culinary origins of the flavors they enjoy, according to Xu.
At Baisun, this process begins with what the company calls "flavor discovery" -- identifying an authentic dish as the starting point and capturing its distinctive taste before adapting it into a new product.
"Some of our products draw inspiration from traditional Chinese flavors and culinary techniques passed down by local master chefs, including those recognized as part of China's intangible cultural heritage," Xu said.
Baisun's typhoon shelter-style fried shrimp noodles offer a case in point. The R&D team first traced the dish to its culinary roots and sought out chefs specializing in its preparation. Team members then traveled to the region to sample the authentic dish before recreating its flavor in the company's innovation kitchen. Only then did they adapt the recipe to the instant noodle format for mass production.
"Our goal is to ensure that when consumers try these noodles, they experience the authentic taste of the original dish," Xu said.
Baisun has built an integrated R&D network spanning Shanghai and Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province, with a pilot production facility in Kaifeng forming a complementary third component -- a structure the company describes as its "two-plus-one" model.
The Zhengzhou R&D center focuses on applied research and noodle products, while the Shanghai center, which officially opened in May this year, serves as a hub for innovation across a wider range of food categories, including beverages, frozen foods, seasonings and snacks. It houses 15 specialized laboratories and also undertakes fundamental research into new technologies and applications related to flour, edible oils and packaging materials.
As consumers place greater emphasis on product quality, building quality controls into every stage of production and ensuring end-to-end traceability are becoming increasingly important across the food industry.
"Quality is designed into a product, not inspected into it," Xu said.
He explained that quality considerations must be built in from the earliest stages of product development, when R&D teams finalize formulations and packaging designs. Traceability must extend across the entire supply chain, from raw material sourcing and product development to manufacturing, packaging, warehousing and distribution, ensuring that every product reaching consumers meets strict safety and quality standards.
"Earning consumers' trust is the most important thing we can deliver," he said.
Freeze-dried cilantro, for example, undergoes extensive testing for microbial contamination, heavy metals and pesticide residues before it can be used in production. Only raw materials that meet the required safety standards are approved for use, Xu said. Such stringent controls help ensure the safety and consistency of the finished products.
-- Taking Chinese flavors global: Baisun's localization strategy
Instant noodle brands from Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Indonesia have established strong footholds in international markets after years of overseas expansion. For Chinese manufacturers, building globally recognized brands and winning over consumers beyond the Chinese-speaking community remains a major challenge.
To better understand local tastes, Baisun has invited foreign residents in Shanghai to take part in product testing at its consumer science laboratory. New products are launched only after receiving positive feedback from these evaluations.
"Every new product must undergo independent consumer testing, with more than 1,000 samples collected to gauge market acceptance before it goes on sale. If the feedback falls short of expectations, we go back to the drawing board and refine the product," Xu said.
But winning over consumers is only part of the challenge. Baisun's ambition is to build a global brand with strong local roots, which requires it to move beyond Chinese supermarkets and secure shelf space in mainstream retail chains in overseas markets.
This is a challenge shared by many Chinese food companies expanding abroad: even when their products appeal to local consumers, limited access to distribution channels can prevent them from reaching a broader customer base and breaking out of ethnic retail niches.
Xu recalled an overseas market research trip during which his team invited local consumers to sample products such as Baisun's chicken soup noodles. Some were impressed enough to ask where they could buy them. Yet at the time, the products were available only in Chinese supermarkets, making it difficult to reach mainstream local shoppers.
"Baisun is making steady progress in getting its products into mainstream supermarket chains overseas. Once we have established a broader distribution network, we expect overseas sales to gain significant momentum," Xu said.
Baisun currently exports its products to 76 countries and regions. Looking ahead, Baisun plans to establish R&D centers in key markets around the world to better understand local consumer preferences and respond more quickly to changing tastes.
The company's ambition, Xu said, is to build a globally trusted Chinese food brand, which stays true to its Chinese roots while winning the hearts and trust of consumers worldwide.
The Shanghai R&D center will play a key role in advancing this strategy. In China, it will focus on exploring and recreating distinctive regional flavors. Overseas, its teams will study local food cultures and dietary habits in markets including the United States, Japan, Southeast Asia and Africa, translating those insights into products tailored to local tastes.
From testing its cilantro-flavored noodles online and recreating authentic restaurant dishes in its innovation kitchen to building an international R&D network, Baisun is working to turn consumer-driven innovation and a commitment to quality into lasting competitive advantages.
The success of its cilantro-flavored noodles is just one milestone in that journey. For Baisun, the real test lies not in creating another viral hit, but in building a pipeline of products that can win lasting consumer loyalty, both at home and in markets around the world. (Contributed by Wei Yutian and Gao Pan)
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