"This is an industry entirely driven by the market. Its low start, small size, short history, and rapid development are its characteristics. There is still a large gap between the requirements of China's food industry development." At the awarding ceremony of the “2010-2011 China Food Industry Top Ten Selection Awards” organized by the Internet, Li Shujun, Chairman of the China Food and Packaging Machinery Industry Association, conducted an overview of China's food and packaging machinery industry when interviewed by this reporter.

He said that for a long time, China's food and packaging machinery industry has a low level of product technology, unreasonable industrial structure, low standardization, and lack of innovation capability. It is grim, homogenous and low-level vicious competition, and the market supply capacity is seriously deficient, large-scale, Intelligent high-end food and packaging machinery mainly rely on imports.

“It can be said that the overall industry level lags at least 20 years in the developed countries. If we do not seize the period of strategic opportunities for national transformation and development, and accelerate the upgrading of independent innovation capabilities, a new round of technological revolution led by information technology and materials technology will surely lead. Further widening the gap with the international advanced level, and even endanger the country's food security." Li Shujun warned.

The outlook for food packaging machinery is promising. Food safety is a major issue related to the national economy and the people's livelihood. Behind the supply of China's 1.3 billion population of food supplies, it is a huge market for food and packaging machinery.

Li Shujun said that China's food packaging machinery industry started in the early 1980s. Since its development, there are nearly 7,000 food and packaging machinery manufacturers in China. Food packaging machinery has become one of the top ten industries in China's machinery industry. Since the beginning of the new century, China's food industry has grown at an average rate of over 20% for 10 consecutive years. In 2010, the total output value of the food industry reached 6.3 trillion yuan, and it is expected to exceed 7 trillion yuan in 2011. Food and packaging machinery, as carriers of high-tech food manufacturing, play a decisive role in ensuring food safety and promoting the rapid development of the food industry.

"It can be said that without modern high-end food and packaging machinery, there will be no healthy and safe food industry." Li Shujun said that during the "11th Five-Year Plan" period, the average annual growth rate of China's food and packaging machinery industry output value is close to 22%, 2010 The total output value exceeded 180 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 23%. It is expected that by the end of the 12th Five-Year Plan, it will reach 600 billion yuan, becoming one of the most dynamic and fastest-growing industries in the national economy.

According to the latest data from the China Federation of Machinery Industry, from January to October 2011, the development of the food packaging machinery industry in the country experienced a significant year-on-year growth. The growth rate of total industrial output value and sales output reached 30.38% and 31.17% respectively; The growth rate of the value of goods reached 53.82%, with a cumulative increase of 18.65 percentage points.

In addition to the huge domestic demand brought about by the development of the food industry, according to authoritative experts, the demand for food packaging machinery in the foreign market has also greatly increased. For example, India, the second largest food producer in the world, has a relatively small food industry. With the improvement of people’s living standards, the demand for refined foods and fast and convenient foods has increased. As a result, demand for food packaging machinery, convenience food processing machinery, etc. is very strong. . The Chinese food packaging machinery, because of its good quality and low price, is very popular. In addition, the Middle East market is also increasing its demand for small and medium-sized packaging machinery and food processing machinery in China. Wu Zhenqiang, general manager of Shanghai Wodi Technology Co., Ltd., told reporters that the products they produce not only sell well in China, but also have a good export situation. The products are exported to the United States, Japan, Australia, Singapore, the European Union and other developed regions as well as Southeast Asia, Africa, and China. Asia, Middle East and other countries.

The relevant data shows that the current global demand for packaging equipment is growing rapidly at an annual growth rate of 5.2%. In the next few years, the sales volume of packaging equipment in developing countries will exceed that of Japan, the United States and other developed countries.

Insufficient innovation restricts the development of the industry The improvement of the living standards of the people has a positive effect on the food industry. The market prospect of the food packaging machinery industry is generally optimistic. However, for the domestic food packaging machinery enterprises, whether the market is a delicious cake or a hot one What about the mountains? He Nanzhi, former executive vice president and secretary-general of the China Food and Packaging Machinery Industry Association, said: "At present, many domestic food processing and packaging machinery manufacturers are passive in their development, and many technological improvements are also helpless. ”

Li Shujun said that of the nearly 7,000 food and packaging machinery manufacturers in China, more than 95% are small and medium-sized enterprises and private enterprises, and the geographical distribution of the eastern and western regions is very different. Most of the production enterprises are concentrated in China's economically developed regions, such as the Pearl River Delta. , the Yangtze River Delta, Bohai Bay and other regions. Small but large, large but not large, big but not strong, has become an indisputable fact in the food and packaging machinery industry. There is still a big gap compared with the level of manufacturing in developed countries.

He enumerated these major gaps to reporters: The lack of independent innovation capability and insufficient attention to advanced technologies relied on foreign countries, and the passive situation in which high-end equipment relied on imports could not be effectively improved; price vicious competition still existed, and product homogenization and plagiarism remained widespread. The idea of ​​Xiaofuyi’an is still very serious; the basic development is lagging behind, and the basic spare parts, automation, intelligent control systems and test instruments, machining and basic manufacturing equipment have obviously lagged behind the development of the mainframe, and have become an impact on food packaging machinery products. High-end upgrade bottlenecks.

Zhai Xiaojin, chairman of Shijiazhuang Xiaojin Machinery Manufacturing Technology Co., Ltd., also told reporters that although the gap between China's food packaging machinery industry and foreign countries is gradually narrowing, it has made remarkable achievements in the substitution of imports and has forced many foreign products to exit the Chinese market or drastically reduce prices. However, in the short term, China's food packaging machinery industry will still win by price rather than advanced technology.

“At present, China’s export volume of packaging machinery is less than 5% of its total output value, but its import value is roughly equivalent to the total output value. This shows that China’s demand for packaging machinery is very large. Compared with foreign products, the gap between the technological level of domestic packaging machinery is still Larger, far from meeting domestic demand, said an industry source.

In addition, there are about 1,300 varieties of food packaging machinery in China, lack of high-tech, high-precision, high-quality accessory products, low product performance, poor stability and reliability, short life, rough surface treatment, and unattractive appearance. From the perspective of business status, about 2,000 of the nearly 7,000 companies are not stable enough. Nearly 15% of the companies convert or close down each year. At the same time, about the same number of new companies enter the industry; The lack of leading companies, annual sales exceeds 100 million yuan. There are only a dozen companies in the yuan, and about 50 companies have annual sales of more than 30 million yuan. From the point of view of scientific research product development, it still basically remains in the test imitation stage, and its own development ability is not strong, and research investment is low. The funds only account for 1% of sales, while developed countries are as high as 8% to 10%.

Turning ways and levels are imminent How to further enhance the overall strength of China's food packaging machinery industry so that it can participate in the internationalization trend and catch up with international standards, Li Shujun thinks there are three ways out:

First of all, cultivating and developing high-end equipment manufacturing and building a well-known brand in the industry is the only way to make the food packaging machinery bigger and stronger. “Our food and packaging machinery industry must take the development of high-end equipment manufacturing industry as a top priority, strengthen the research and development of core key technologies, break through the weak links in key product areas, and seize the commanding heights of future industrial development to maintain sustainable development and become bigger and stronger. Create necessary conditions," he said.

Second, improving the quality and efficiency of industrial development is an inherent requirement for changing the mode of economic development. At present, the export volume of food and packaging machinery in China is still very small. There was a deficit of US$1.35 billion last year, indicating that quite a few are still at the low end of industries relying on simple processing and efficiency gains from cheap labor, and the road to go is still very long. The total size of the food and packaging machinery industry seems to be OK. Last year, it reached 182.5 billion yuan, but the mode of economic growth was extensive, product profit levels were low, coupled with rising prices, relative energy shortages, and multiple environmental protection requirements, the original product The comparative advantages have gradually weakened, and the comparative disadvantages have become increasingly prominent.

“In the new round of industrial competition, the industrial safety and development prospects of the food and packaging machinery industry are not optimistic. Therefore, increase the efforts to adjust the structure, transfer methods, and the upper level, accelerate the improvement of product quality and efficiency, and pay attention to the development of product science and technology innovation. The road is imperative and imminent," said Li Shujun.

Third, strengthening industrial common technology research is a strong guarantee for improving the innovation capability of China's food and packaging machinery industry. According to Li Shujun, at present, the common technology research in China's food and packaging machinery industry lags behind and lacks effective systems and mechanisms, and lacks overall planning and policy protection. In recent years, in order to meet the needs of industrial development on common technologies, some industry associations, enterprises and institutions have called for and taken active measures to strengthen the research and development of common technologies. However, due to institutional mechanisms and commercial interests, the common technologies Research cannot be scaled, and it lacks systemicity and continuity, and the results achieved are very limited.

“Our food and packaging machinery industry must improve the ability of scientific and technological innovation as soon as possible. We must innovate our thinking, adopt the national trend, and hold the force of the industry to promote the establishment of an enterprise-based technology research and innovation system and mechanism, and improve the knowledge of common technological achievements. The property rights diffusion mechanism jointly promotes the development and utilization of scientific and technological resources and the sharing of results, and forms the practical role and effect of promoting innovation, incubation, and industrialization. It also aims to consolidate the technological foundation for industrial development, foster and develop high-end equipment manufacturing, and provide innovative support and public service guarantees. "Li Shujun finally said.