Taihe board pulls 10 billion yuan industry to drive 100 thousand people to employment
The board face of "one salty and three flavors, one spicy and one hundred percent". Photo by Luan Kui
When it comes to Fuyang, Anhui, many people will think of "populous city", "Jianghuai granary" and "migrant workers". As everyone knows, with the tide of reform and opening up, many entrepreneurs have emerged here, including 100,000 "small bosses" on the management board of Taihe County.
In the current severe and complicated situation of epidemic prevention and control, since mid-March, Wang Zhisheng, a native of Taihe, Anhui Province, who is engaged in board business in Linyi, Shandong Province, has organized more than 100 franchised chain stores to provide lunch and dinner for epidemic prevention personnel free of charge. Han Lei, a native of Taihe, Anhui Province, who runs a board shop in Minhang District, Shanghai, has provided vegetables, eggs and flour in the store to the surrounding people free of charge … Taihe board people are doing their best to help prevent and control the epidemic.
Board face, named after the beating on the chopping board. How did this local cuisine go from Taihe, Anhui Province to the whole country and even the whole world? While promoting employment, how can Taihe Board become a rich industry? Recently, People’s Daily reporters interviewed many parties to explore the story behind Taihe’s board.
Hard work, small three rounds to pull out the big map
Since 2020, in the face of the epidemic, from "Come on! Regan Noodles "to" Come on! Grilled cold noodles ",from" steady! Zhajiang Noodles "to" Come on! "Tiaozi", a series of local cuisines have become the warm slogan of Chinese people.
When Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province suffered an epidemic in January 2021, netizens shouted "Come on! Authentic Anhui beef noodles. "
How did Anhui beef noodles become a local delicacy in Shijiazhuang? This should also start from the "flat village" in Taihe County, Fuyang City, Anhui Province.
In Taihe County, the village where the noodle operators live together is called "noodle village", and the earliest one is Da Zhang Cun, an old county town. The villagers Jianping Song and Ding Wenxi brought this dish to Hebei in the 1990s.
In May, 1993, with the tide of farmers going out to work, Jianping Song and Ding Wenxi moved to Tangshan City, Hebei Province.
"In the first three years, we didn’t actually make any money, but we had a good face. When we went home for the New Year, people asked how we were doing, so we bragged that it was very profitable. In 1996, people in the village began to go out with us, but that year, business began to get better and better. " Jianping Song said.
Relying on "family brings family, relatives bring relatives", Greater Zhang Cun has become a well-known "flat village".
The board was named after being smashed on the chopping board. Photo by Tao Jun
In the early days of starting a business, we couldn’t afford to rent a facade. Everyone was a tricycle, a stove made of old oil drums, and a piece of white cloth with the words "Taihe Board" written in red. We got up early and wandered in the streets and lanes of the city in spite of the wind and snow.
With the strength of not being afraid of hardships and not admitting defeat, in the past 30 years, "Taihe board people" have gradually formed a group.
On the tricycles pulled by Taihe people, the board traveled all over Hebei, and gradually radiated to Tianjin, Shandong, Beijing and the three northeastern provinces. In the southern cities of Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, there are also the shadows of Taihe board people working hard. Even more, someone has taken the Taihe board out of the country.
Pioneering and innovating, integrating into "food memory" in various places
In addition to taking everyone out to start a business, Jianping Song and Ding Wenxi were praised by everyone for their innovation in the board. The two originally sold mutton noodles. After discovering that Hebei people prefer beef, they combined the noodles with local eating habits and innovatively made a "beef noodles".
Carefully cooked marinade, fragrant beef, full-bodied board surface, and the more chewy and fragrant pepper, the beef board surface of "one salty and three flavors, one spicy to one hundred percent" gradually gained a foothold in Yanzhao.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Photo by Luan Bin
While the market territory is expanding, the innovation of the people in Taihe Board continues.
"The floorboards are studied by Lao Song and Mrding, but the marinade and beef are made by ourselves. After all, every place has different eating habits and tastes." In Jinma Road, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province, Taihe people, Xue Yonggang and Liu Yana, opened a luxury noodle shop for 11 years. Because Shijiazhuang people have a variety of tastes, their noodles not only have beef and eggs, but also add meatballs, bean skins, kelp, tofu skewers and other ingredients.
"In many places, board shops only sell board faces. But Bengbu people like supper, eat slowly and talk slowly, so we added some stir-fried dishes and cold dishes. " Gao Wei, a villager from Guomiao Town, Taihe County, has a booming business in Bengbu City, Anhui Province, and doubled its business area last year …
After years of doing as the Romans do and making innovations, Taihe board has gradually integrated into the daily life of many cities.
"Shijiazhuang people love to eat noodles, and they are used to it. Some people are from snacks to big ones, so that some netizens say that’ Shijiazhuang specialty snacks are authentic beef noodles in Anhui’." Liu Yana said.
In 1998, Wang Zhisheng and two fellow villagers opened the first board shop in Linyi, Shandong Province. Now, more than 20 years later, board shops have not only grown with a generation, but also spread all over the streets. Wang Zhisheng said that in Linyi today, the convenient and affordable board has become a habitual choice for many people to eat fast food.
"Other snack bars often change their doors, but our noodle shop has persisted." Among all kinds of special snacks from other places entering Jilin City, Jilin Province, Taihe noodles can be described as "iron camp". From the first store opened by Lang Yuchang, a native of Taihe, in 2003, Taihe Board has been in Jilin for 19 years. At present, there are more than 300 noodle shops in Jilin city, far exceeding the number of other snack bars, which shows the local people’s recognition and love for noodle shops.
Transformation and upgrading, the 10 billion yuan market continues to evolve.
According to the statistics of Taihe County Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, at present, there are about 100,000 employees in the county, and there are about 50,000 large and small board shops in the country, with an annual income of 10 billion yuan. This group that came out of the countryside has created a vast world. With the development of China’s economy and society, this 10 billion yuan market is constantly evolving.
Taihe board is loaded and sent to all parts of the country. Photo by Tao Jun
When the market grows bigger, it is inevitable that others will imitate it. How can we protect the hard-earned reputation? Many Taihe people choose to establish their own brands.
Guo Zhi, a Taihe native who has been operating in Beijing for nearly 20 years, originally used the signboard "Weiba". After he became famous, the same signboard appeared in the market. In 2015, he renamed the store "Guo Ji Wei Ba" and successfully registered the trademark. In August 2019, he opened his own image shop in Gulou East Street, Changping District.
Facing the door-to-door consultation of outsiders, Luan Bin, a Taihe person who started a business in Langfang, Hebei Province, opened up another road. "If you open a shop in disorder, it will be easy to smash the brand on the board of Taihe. I just want to be a brand and join." In 2010, he founded "Lumeng Board" to guide and assist franchisees in the whole process, from technical formula to equipment procurement, from marketing planning to door-to-door guidance, which ensured the promotion of Taihe Board. Today, Luan Bin has more than 300 franchise stores in China.
With the development of the market, the related industries of Taihe Board are also growing.
Ruan Baohua, president of Taihe Board Chamber of Commerce, specializes in the board spice business. With all kinds and good quality, thousands of board shops all over the country have become his customers, with a turnover of more than 50 million yuan in 2021.
Jianping Song (left) and Ding Wenxi (right) are picking spices in the shop. Photo by Tao Jun
Make it bigger and stronger, and make it a big industry to enrich the people.
"Taihe Board" is a small business to enrich the people. How to make it bigger and stronger and further become a county-level industry to enrich the people? In recent years, Fuyang City and Taihe County have gradually explored and promoted related work.
In order to show the culture of Taihe board face and the elegant demeanor of board face people, in May 2015, Taihe board face making skills were included in the fourth batch of county-level intangible cultural heritage list of Taihe. In 2018, Taihe noodles were rated as the top ten snacks in Anhui. In 2019, panel production was listed as a special type of work for employment skills training in Fuyang City. From 2018 to 2020, Taihe County held Taihe Board Culture and Art Festival and Taihe Board Skills Competition for three consecutive years.
The first Taihe Flat Culture and Art Festival (data map). Photo by Tao Jun
In order to strengthen organizational guarantee, in December 2018, with the support of Taihe County Party Committee and county government, Taihe County Cuisine Association established a professional board committee. In March 2019, Taihe County Board Chamber of Commerce was incorporated.
In addition, based on the market of 10 billion yuan, Taihe County is also studying the construction of related industrial chains.
In the analysis report of "One Bowl of Noodles Makes Four Industries" in Taihe County, it is said that "a bowl of noodles is equipped with four industries: flour, meat, fabric and vegetables". Based on the calculation of 20,000 noodle shops, it needs 600,000 mu of wheat, 130,000 beef cattle, 110,000 mu of peppers and 10,000 mu of small vegetables a year.
"Relying on the huge market, Taihe County extends the agricultural industrial chain, helps improve the quality and efficiency of agriculture, and helps farmers increase production and income, which has unlimited possibilities." Xu Gongxue, a member of the Party Group of Taihe County Agricultural and Rural Bureau and director of beautiful countryside Construction Promotion Center, has been studying the board.
The business opportunities of industrial chain extension have been seized. Ruan Baohua, who is engaged in spice business, cooperated with Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences in 2019 to try to plant a special pepper variety-Xiyanghong. In 2021, the planting area of Xiyanghong will reach more than 800 mu, and the average income per mu will reach 5,700 yuan. In the next five years, he plans to build a 10,000-mu pepper base to drive more people to increase their income and get rich.
The wave of fast food has also brought more opportunities for Taihe County to develop county-level industries to enrich the people.
The production scene of fast food Taihe noodles. Photo by Tao Jun
"In March 2021, our fast food board was listed, and it is currently produced in other places. The next step is to build a factory in Taihe. There are not only the front-end special flour, vegetable processing and spice processing, but also the surrounding cultural and creative products. If an industrial park can be formed, the gathering of funds and talents can be accelerated. " Wei Jitang, general manager of Anhui Taiban No.1 Electronic Commerce Co., Ltd. said.
With the hard work of 100,000 people in Taihe, the board has entered the city from the countryside, forming a market of tens of billions, and gradually moving towards branding, industrialization and internationalization. At present, the county government of Taihe County Committee is starting to design the top brand and build a model market for the brand of "Taihe Board", improve the construction of online service platform, establish the development strategy of "one city, one organization", cultivate leading figures who understand technology and operate well, extend the industrial chain, build a theme cultural park and enhance the cultural connotation of "Taihe Board".
In the future, Taihe noodles, which has become a famous snack, will drive and inspire more people to start businesses and get employed, and increase their income and get rich.
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