The food distribution industry has lived by the same processes, systems, and standards for decades, inching toward broader offerings and a more streamlined workflow. In recent months, a new player in the game has taken a leaps-and-bounds approach to bring quality ingredients using top tech and a focus on specialty ingredient sourcing. The Fresh2 eCommerce platform is a specialty food delivery space that brings China’s stellar food distribution strategies to North America—the answer to the West’s exponential growth in demand for Asian specialty cuisine.
The Genius of China’s Food Distribution
Billionaire entrepreneur, Maodong Xu, has applied his penchant for lucrative risks to changing the food distribution landscape in the U.S. by introducing the supply channels and distribution methods of China to a new space where the need is great. China’s incredible e-commerce practices have surpassed the U.S. models for years, and Mr. Xu has made it his mission to share those practices with the promising market potential in North America.
Chinese farms, factories, and wholesalers have identified and implemented effective systems for sourcing and delivering food while limiting food waste and lowering costs. A business model which has existed for decades in China is changing food distribution and delivery in the U.S. for the better, with the added bonus of moving systems from call centers and large distribution plants to focused, localized distribution methods that integrate the right tech to make the job easy.
Modeled after its strategic shareholder, a Chinese mature technology platform, Fresh2 utilizes a mature IT platform that facilitates one-click ordering and cuts out the middleman, preserving the freshness and quality of ingredients. Its self-operated model will gradually add a larger platform, set to rival the competition in size and scale. It holds promise to become the largest e-commerce platform for specialty restaurant food supply in the United States—starting with Asian cuisine and eventually expanding.
Further, Fresh 2 brings a social benefit that many overlook. In an environment where Asian restaurants are struggling to find specialty ingredients, their American counterparts are able to use ready-to-cook or premade components of their meals. These prepackaged ingredients lead to less waste as food processing plants work to preserve costs. Without this luxury, Asian restauranteurs are losing money on food waste by using raw materials and processing them in-house. The goal is, as the demand for Asian specialty ingredients is identified, met, and measured, a case can be made for domestic food processing and packaging factories to prepare Asian specialty ingredients as well, lowering costs and supporting less food waste.
Fresh2 is set to become a leading e-commerce platform, and its innovative app is the hub uniting the resources, tech, and manpower to create the best possible food delivery system for specialty and fresh ingredients. Fresh2 is the answer to the niche food sector, an underserved and neglected group in conventional food distribution channels.
Growing Asian Cuisine
Starting with Asian cuisine is a natural first step in revolutionizing specialty food delivery and the food distribution system as a whole. Chinese food consistently ranks number 1 in the list of popular cuisines in the United States, and in a Statista report on the fastest-growing Asian food markets, six of the top ten leading ethnic cuisines in the U.S. are Asian. With specialty Asian cuisine and restaurants continuing to rise in demand, it is clear that they will not relinquish their status as an in-demand dining option any time soon.
The U.S. food supply market has grown to $300 billion each year, and big players in the industry—Sysco, PFG, and US Foods—hold 31% of the market share. This begs the question, why are the distributors who dominate the mainstream U.S. food market shying away from providing the fresh, quality ingredients required for Asian cuisine? The annual Asian restaurant market sits at around $60 billion, and the room for improvement in supplying specialty ingredients is stark. Fresh2 answers the call to meet the needs of neglected ethnic restaurants. Chinese restaurants particularly often require raw and fresh food ingredients that struggle to be met in a traditional call center model. Ingredients can not sit in low-efficiency storage, degrading in quality.
Putting it All Together
We are approaching a new era in Asian food sourcing and delivery for American consumers, and the Fresh2 app is the conduit providing the farm-to-fork workflow that preserves food integrity and best serves each restaurant owner. The demand for affordable, quality-sourced food supplies in a timely manner is the first step for the app. No longer will sourcing common specialty ingredients be such a challenge.
As the trend in demand for Asian cuisine continues, mainstream wholesalers continue to struggle to serve the segment. Conventional food delivery truly operates by a different culture, unable to adapt to sourcing new foods and balancing the freshness and timeliness of delivery with managed costs. The need for fresh, raw, even live ingredients in this niche market far surpasses that of western fare, and it’s time to change the narrative—and the tech.
Through the Fresh2 app, Maodong Xu and his team are calling for an industrial revolution, a reform, and a better way of getting the right ingredients to the eager customer. Old school no longer cuts it, and the traditions of the last three decades are simply a launching pad for a better, smoother, easier way to source quality ingredients. Fresh2 is the next level, and it’s proved that the possibilities are endless.