Food on display at the Industry Ecology Expo for Food and Agricultural Products Processing in Chongqing, October 16, 2025. (Photo/Tan Xinyu)

Chongqing - Industry insiders say the future of China’s food sector will focus on greater convenience, safety, flavor, and health, as younger generations emerge as the industry’s most influential critics.

At the 2025 Chongqing Food and Agricultural Products Processing High-Quality Development Industrial Ecology Conference last month, a manager from Chongqing Dejia Meat Science and Technology Development Co., Ltd., who requested anonymity for privacy reasons, said that younger consumers — including post-90s, post-00s, and even post-10s — will shape the market, and that meeting their expectations requires food that is delicious, affordable, safe, and convenient.

According to a Xinhua report, the China Catering Development Report 2025 notes that young people have become the driving force behind a new wave of catering consumption. They value experiential dining, prefer “aesthetic meals” that combine taste with visual appeal, and increasingly prioritize health. Catering to their preferences has become a shared goal across the food industry.

For Chongqing cuisine, Zhang Yuhao, Vice President of the Chongqing Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Chairman of the Chongqing Agricultural Products Processing Technology Innovation Alliance, identified nutrition and health as key priorities for future development. He said that while Chongqing cuisine is known for its bold and spicy flavors, its high oil and salt content present health challenges. Reducing these elements while maintaining signature flavors has become an important direction for the industry.

Zhang emphasized the growing role of artificial intelligence in enhancing production efficiency and product design. He noted that Chongqing’s strong foundation in advanced manufacturing has enabled AI-powered production across many sectors and that AI will increasingly assist in decision-making to improve product stability, standardization, and consistency.

He also pointed to frontier technologies such as microbial, algae-based, and cell-based synthesis as vital to developing healthier food components that align with modern consumers’ nutritional and taste preferences. Scientific and technological innovation, he said, remains the driving force of the food and agricultural processing industry. As an example, he cited research on using naturally occurring components to replace traditional additives, including the successful production of luncheon meat without compound phosphates.

The three-day conference, held in Chongqing from October 15 to 17, introduced new standards and regulations to promote safety, innovation, and sustainable growth in the food processing industry.

The Dejia manager added that large-scale, intensive, and standardized production — supported by stricter national supervision and technological advances — has greatly improved the reliability of food safety controls. Production standards and full-chain supervision requirements across the industry have become increasingly stringent. With AI and big data now playing a greater role in safety monitoring, companies are placing stronger emphasis on quality control. Standardized production, whether for pre-made dishes or packaged foods, is viewed as a more reliable safeguard for food safety than takeout meals.

Since 2023, Chongqing has hosted the Food and Agricultural Products Processing High-Quality Development Industrial Ecology Conference annually. This year’s theme, “New Momentum for Food, New Pathways for Ecosystem,” focused on emerging trends and strategies for optimizing the food industry ecosystem.

An accompanying Industry Ecology Expo for Food and Agricultural Products Processing showcased the entire industry chain, from technological equipment and product development to regional collaboration.

During the opening ceremony on October 16, a signing ceremony for investment and production-marketing cooperation projects was also held. A total of 81 projects were signed, with a combined investment of 25.42 billion yuan (about 3.57 billion U.S. dollars), covering key sectors such as grain and oil processing, snack foods, pre-made dishes, meat and dairy products, and hotpot ingredients.