Chinese consumers are giving the cold shoulder to vegetable juices, judging them too expensive and not sufficiently tasty.
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The beverage sector has invested heavily in producing and promoting vegetable juices in recent years, forecasting that vegetable juice could drive bottom-line growth in a fiercely competitive industry. However, it still accounts for just 1.5% of the beverage market.
Chinese people eat a lot of vegetables, and are generally concerned to eat healthily, so vegetable juice, prepared by beating or pressing fresh vegetables, seemed destined for success. Some nutritionists even claim that vegetable juice is healthier than eating cooked vegetables as they contain higher quantities of vitamins and minerals.
However, sales have been disappointing. A survey of large supermarkets in the capital city of Beijing revealed that consumer uptake was negligible. In one Wumei outlet in the north of the city, for example, just one carton of lotus-flavoured tomato juice was sold per week. Mineral water, bottled drinking water, fruit juice and carbonated soft drinks are performing more briskly.
One possible reason for Chinese apathy towards vegetable juice is its price. As an article in the China Daily reported, A 250-milliletre (8.5-fluid ounce) carton of tomato juice sells for about 2.7 yuan (33 US cents). On the other hand, the market price for tomatoes at a vegetable wholesale market in Beijing, is about 1 yuan (12 US cents) per pound (450 grams).
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