Opinion | From heated debate on “Bing Bang Lang” to soliciting opinions on the standard of vegetable fat, consumers pay more attention to health demand for milk tea
Recently, the composition of the base milk used in the tea industry has sparked heated discussions among netizens. Some product reviews from bloggers have revealed similarities between a certain “Bing Bolang” base milk and an imitation cream powder, labeling “Bing Bolang” as a “tech milk,” triggering widespread discussions.
On January 7th, the China Beverage Industry Association released a “Notice on Publicly Soliciting Opinions on the ‘Standard for Non-Dairy Creamer’ Industry Standard (Draft for Comments)”, highlighting the industry’s urgent need for a unified standard on tea beverage additives.
In essence, there are significant differences in the raw materials between Bing Bolang and the imitation cream powder. The top three ingredients of the imitation cream powder are starch sugar, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, and lactalbumin. However, the top three ingredients of Bing Bolang are water, edible oil products (non-hydrogenated), and concentrated milk (raw milk). According to international testing agency SGS, Bing Bolang has zero trans fatty acids (not detected).
In my view, Bing Bolang’s non-hydrogenated base milk represents a significant breakthrough in terms of being non-hydrogenated, resulting in zero imitation cream powder, zero hydrogenated vegetable oil, and zero trans fatty acids. These advantages are attributed to its breakthrough in non-hydrogenated oil technology, which avoids the production of trans fatty acids from hydrogenated vegetable oil and creates a healthy concept. At the same time, it retains the smooth texture of milk tea without suppressing tea aroma or fruit flavors.
Emulsifiers, flavorings, and other food additives are common and compliant in modern food industry practices. Among them, emulsifiers help mix oil and water to ensure food stability. Flavorings are used to enhance or adjust food flavors and are widely used in milk tea, ice cream, salad sauce, and other foods. As long as food additives are operated within the scope and limits specified in the GB2760-2014 “National Food Safety Standard for Food Additives,” they are safe.
People’s attitudes towards milk tea have followed a necessary path through Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Initially, to satisfy physiological needs such as taste and fullness, people later sought emotional and spiritual fulfillment on higher levels. With the popularization of health awareness, young people have more diverse requirements for the health of tea drinks.
From consumer trends, people pay close attention to specific dimensions and parameters – preferring healthy tea beverage products that meet standards such as zero milk powder, zero essence, zero fruit glucose syrup, and zero hydrogenated vegetable oil, while also valuing the physical and mental healing effects of a cup of “tasty, joyful, and healthy value-added” drink. For the competition among tea brands in the future, the core will still be product-side competition – whoever can lead through health value, manage consumer expectations, and even lead the standard demand for health, will likely have the most user loyalty.
The release of the “Notice on Publicly Soliciting Opinions on the ‘Standard for Non-Dairy Creamer’ Industry Standard (Draft for Comments)” by the China Beverage Industry Association indicates the importance attached by the national level and professional field to related industries and such substances. From another perspective, it also shows that relevant aspects are promoting the positive development of beverage (tea drinks) additive industries, which is a protective action for consumers.
(The author is a senior food inspector, expert in science popularization in China, and well-known expert in food safety.)
