Sales of soy milk makers shoot up

"I'm used to drinking both dairy and soy milk. But under the circumstances, I would much rather have fresh soy milk," said Zheng Jia, having just bought a soy milk maker.

Since the melamine scandal broke, many consumers like Zheng have resorted to DIY (do it yourself) nutritious drinks, and automatic soy milk makers have been selling like hot cakes.

According to statistics from Gome, China's leading home appliance retailer, in Beijing, the sales of home appliances have doubled in the past two weeks over the corresponding period last year, with branded soy milk makers like Joyoung and Midea leading the sales.

Another heavyweight retailer, Suning, has experienced a similar phenomenon. Qian Chengjian, general manager of Suning's life group, said: "Before the melamine scare, we would usually sell 2,000 units of soy milk makers per day. That number has soared to 3,000 to 5,000 units now and sometimes crosses 10,000 on weekends."

Sales of soy milk makers have actually been booming in the past two years as more and more people have been switching to homemade fresh soy milk.

"Joyoung sales began to rise rapidly in 2007, with the total revenue reaching 1.94 billion yuan and sales doubling from 2006. As one of our core products, soy milk makers contribute half of the sales. They are also doing well in overseas markets such as Japan, the US, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand," said Ma Haixia, marketing department director of Shandong Joyoung Electric Appliances Co.

"Joyoung will maintain sufficient supply and stable prices during the National Day holiday, when sales normally peak," Ma added.

About 1.8 million units of soy milk makers were sold in China in 2005, and sales went up to 3 million and 5 million in the next two years. Analysts with TX Investment Consulting Co predicted the annual growth rate of soy milk makers will remain at 40 percent in the next three to five years.

As inventor of the world's first automatic soy milk maker, Joyoung has 14 years of experience in this field and occupies more than 80 percent of the market share. But its monopoly status has begun to be challenged.

On Sept 15, Guangdong Midea Electric Appliances Co, China's second largest appliance maker by market value, announced it will invest 300 million yuan to build a manufacturing base of soy milk maker in Shunde of Guangdong province. Its annual production capacity is expected to reach 30 million units and the company aims to gain 35 percent market share in three years.

"As in the Olympic Games, with more competitors involved, producers' performance can only improve, which will benefit the industry and consumers," said Chen Gang, of the China Household Electrical Appliances Association.