On Monday, Shanghai Pudong New Area issued the city’s first “ready-to-eat” packaged meal production license to a subsidiary of Tramy Green Food Group, following the creation of a new regulatory framework for the product category, which took effect on Feb. 1. “Ready-to-eat” meals became hugely popular in China in the last three years amid Covid outbreaks and related lockdowns, helping people who were unable to cook as normal save time and energy. Mainstream on-demand grocery delivery services including Alibaba’s Freshippo and Dingdong Maicai have helped spur this popularity by marketing the meals as a healthier alternative to traditional takeaways. [Xinmin Evening News, in Chinese]
