A white tea banquet showcases Fuding's signature cuisine. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Fuding, a coastal city in Fujian province, is building a food industry around its local cuisine by expanding standardized production, developing food brands, and introducing industry standards for traditional dishes.

The city, located on the Fujian-Zhejiang border, is known for its sea bass, large yellow croaker, and laver. Local cuisine features seafood, light flavors, and soup dishes shaped by centuries of cultural and commercial exchanges between Fujian and Zhejiang.

Fuding is home to 378 traditional food specialties, with 104 recognized nationally as specialty dishes, snacks, and dim sum. Three local businesses have also been named nationally recognized restaurants.

To expand its gastronomic sector, the city has established a food industry development committee, created an industry fund, and formed a restaurant and culinary association.

Fuding-style honey-glazed chicken wings. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

One producer of Fuding-style honey-glazed chicken wings has expanded from family-run production to standardized manufacturing. Working with research institutions, the company has developed products including white tea-flavored chicken wings and now produces about 40,000 wings a day for domestic and overseas markets.

Fuding has also published reference books on local snacks and recipes and introduced local production standards for products including Fuding meat slices and xiaolongbao (steamed soup dumplings).