Harbin – Vodka from Russian products, ice cream, flour and soy oil, and many visitors to the just-concluded China-Russia Expo in Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang Province in northeastern China.
One of the most popular Russian products of the Expo is a chocolate candy produced by the Russian KDV Group. In China, because of its unique purple packaging, candy is widely known as “purple candy.”
Purple candy is popular in China because many Chinese have released photos and videos of their candy on social networks and short video platforms.
“My friends told me that purple candy is very popular on the Internet and tastes good,” said Harbin resident Wang Xin, who bought four packs of candy at the Expo. “I often hear people say that Russian products are cheap and of good quality.”
For Lu Wei, chairman of a trading company in Heilongjiang, the popularity of purple sugar was very unimaginable when his company began importing in 2014.
“Our import volume was very small at the beginning. We never expected purple candy to be so popular in China,” Lu said.
In 2015, Lyu sold approximately 2,000 metric tons of purple candy to Chinese customers. Last year, this figure soared to nearly 20,000 tons, with revenues exceeding 400 million yuan ($58 million).
“Many customers buy candy to treat guests during traditional Chinese festivals, which is usually the busiest period of our company,” Lyu said, adding that his company receives more than 40 purple candy containers every day during the busy season.
Song Kui, director of the China-Russia Regional Economic Research Institute of Heilongjiang, said that the popularity of purple sugar in China shows the latest trend of bilateral trade between China and Russia.
“Agricultural products and other foods now account for a larger share of Sino-Russian trade, reflecting major changes in the trade structure,” Song said. “In this context, Sino-Russian trade is bringing benefits to more people in both countries.”
According to official data, the bilateral trade volume between China and Russia last year exceeded US$100 billion, a record high. In particular, in the first 11 months of 2018, agricultural trade increased by 31% year-on-year.
Song’s point of view was answered by Lyu. “Purple candy has witnessed the development of Sino-Russian trade,” he said.
Lyu’s company specialized in Russian construction machinery, wood and steel imports in the 1990s, but now its focus has shifted to bringing Chinese Russian food to the Chinese table.
Lyu added that infrastructure construction in recent years has promoted cross-border trade between China and Russia. He predicted that the first road bridge connecting the two countries under construction would further promote trade and personnel exchanges.
