Rice cooker has become one of the essential kitchen appliances. In the end of 2013 China Household Electrical Appliances Association published "China's rice cooker industry technology roadmap", which was called "related to the livelihood of the appliance." But reporters found that for a long time, in the rice cooker market, the goal has always been to focus consumer attention on the low-end products. In this regard, experts say, rice cooker industry should use technological innovation to break the curse of the low-end market; but also through consumer education should establish a good idea of a good meal is equal to consumption Mega good pot.

High-end products difficult to be recognized

"Since buying a high-level cooker, who had been friends a joke." Consumers Ms. Lee told reporters, because his home in the northeast, so the quality of rice has always been a high demand. To eat delicious memories mellow rice, shortly beforeher purchase price of 900 yuan a well-known brand of rice cookers, with the result after several faulty, "By this, I foundsomeone else to buy rice cooker most only three hundred dollars. "

Zhongguancun online release of "2013-2014 Annual Report on China rice cooker market," pointed out in 2013 underthe strong growth momentum of China's kitchen appliances market environment as an essential household kitchen utensils,cooker market is facing industrial growth bottlenecks. The PRC, the statistics reveal that in 2013 the growth rate of the market is slowing down the rice cooker, rice cooker first half of 2014 the cumulative volume of retail sales fell 7.0%, retail sales grew 3.8%.

China Household Electrical Appliances Association, said Jiang Feng, of both the world's largest producer of rice cookers, is the world's largest consumer. Currently, every hundred rural residents home ownership more than 100 units. In China, thecooker is a mature industry, a complete industrial chain, manufacturing scale globally unique. Rice cooker industry also has abroad space for development, the development of space mainly from the replacement and upgrading of consumption.

However, according to the Zhongguancun Online statistics, in 2013 the number of China's rice cooker market in the sale of products for the 902 models; which, 200 yuan price segment below the highest density products, accounting for 33.5%;three price segments product density between 201 yuan -1000 yuan were more than 15.0 percent; and more than 1000 yuanprice segment products accounted for the relatively low, only 7.6%. Therefore, in the rice cooker market, competition focused on 200 yuan the following products.

At the same time, from the point of view of consumers attention, our rice cooker on the market in 2013, 500 yuan price segment proportion of products concerned were more than 20.0%; of which most users concerned about 201 yuan -300yuan price segment, share market share of attention 26.2%; 200 yuan and 301 yuan -500 yuan price segment followed. In contrast, more than 501 yuan -1000 yuan and 1000 yuan price segment is relatively low proportion of products concernedare less than 20.0%.

And from a different price segment products concerned about the ratio trend, the price of 200 yuan the followingproduct segments showed a rising trend in the proportion of attention in the fourth quarter of 2013 the proportion of their concerns have been more than three percent. In contrast, 201 yuan and 301 yuan -500 -300 million yuan price segment products by the impact of the price of 200 yuan the following product segments, user attention showed a decline.

With innovative break the bottleneck

The PRC, statistics show that the first half of 2014, the domestic retail price of 312 yuan cooker market, compared withthe same period last year, the retail price of 288 yuan, up 24 yuan. Computer type rice cooker which accounted for more than56.7% of retail, up 7.5 percentage points over last year; more than 700 yuan retail products accounted for more than 6.2%, uptwo percentage points higher than a year earlier. "Although the price has improved, but still far compared to the Japanese market." ELITE electrical sales company Liangqi Ren, general manager, told reporters that at present, the price of mainstream products on the Japanese market at around 20,000 yen (about $ 1600 yuan), tiger, India and other high-end brands such asceramic liner products sold about five or six thousand or even million yuan one.

Wang Lei, vice chairman of the China Household Electrical Appliances Association, said: "We have found in the research process, the reason for the lack of effective promotion of high-end rice cookers in our local market, not because of our rice cooker manufacturing enterprise level and so there is a problem in fact, in. technically, our rice cooker manufacturing andinternational advanced level there is no big gap. "

According to reports, Japan and South Korea that the sale price of products for the non-metallic liner, such as South Korea launched a rice cooker liner made of stone, Japan is more use of ceramic materials. . "Ceramic products in the development process, the need to solve many technical problems" Liangqi Ren said, due to the characteristics of clay,molding shrinkable great size fluctuations; and for rice cooker liner, the size of the fluctuations sealing performance cooker isfatal.

Recently, Jingdong Mall ELITE Electric Co., Ltd. jointly announced the company's first ceramic cooker - love potteryseries. It is understood that the series of clay pot rice cooker liner King porcelain pot, baked using traditional techniques;during heating resistant 480 ° C temperature fusion, ceramic coating without distortion no loss, and low water absorption of0.2% when cooking to avoid odor, infrared heating technology to make the pot temperature is more constant. "The beginning of the development, the passing rate of the ceramic liner is less than 10%; even if the size of the qualified, since the product is heated ceramic firing temperature deviation, color and surface quality of the product is also a great difference in cost is very high resulting in a ceramic liner At the same time, product quality is difficult to guarantee the consistency,makes it difficult to mass production. "Liangqi Ren said the company painstaking research team studied more than two years,through the joint R & D ceramic liner, and finally solve the problem of the ceramic liner, final to achieve the industrialproduction and product prices fell to a few hundred dollars.

Supor ball kettle cooker liner using its flagship model CFXB40HZ6 same ball six kettle material thickness. The price oftens of million of this liner before only in Japan and South Korea have adopted top cooker manual. In addition to the revolutionary liner, the Supor ball kettle series also made a number of substantial technological innovation: IH large fire with a fine control of the furnace system that can effectively enhance the rice maturity of 8%, 2% sugar to enhance reached 1.62 times gold expansion, both in making rice nutrition, taste have been a qualitative leap.
 

Intelligence is the future direction
 

Intelligence is a major trend in the field of home appliances, but according to incomplete statistics, in the huge marketof China's total rice cookers, and intelligent products accounted for only 30%. Corresponding to this is that the Japanese market is currently selling 100% of the smart cooker rice cooker.

China Household Electrical Appliances Association published "China's rice cooker industry technology roadmap" (hereinafter referred to as "Technology Roadmap") pointed out that the development and application of new fire-retardantmaterials, intelligent, hot plate technology, evaluation criteria rice, coating inner pot life expectancy is five technicalbottleneck rice cooker industry faces. At present, intelligent rice cooker is mainly reflected in the relevant product featurescooking control and man-machine interface. "Technology Roadmap" proposed in 2017 will achieve intelligent rice cookerproduct can automatically update the menu, network remote control, automatic according to 2020 meters species, water andcooking seasonally adjusted curve; and by automatically detecting the temperature, according to the water adjusttemperature heating time and power to save energy.

Wang Lei pointed out that a large part of our consumers do not have a good concept can make a good pot of rice, justa good meal only to think about the good rice. Therefore, companies should focus on strengthening consumer education forconsumers.

It is understood that, in the Japanese rice cooker market, more energy efficient than conventional heating, boiled ricemore nutritious and more sweet high-end smart cooker market share of 70%. In 2012, the United States launched the sweetIH smart pot, because it is equipped with innovative patented "turbo-breaking bubble" technique, a substantial increase inrice taste, after business promotion efforts, became the first country to enter the hot list, price break thousand yuan cooker.According to the PRC retail monitoring data show that retail sales IH electromagnetic heating type cooker in 2013, an increase of 109.9%, retail sales grew 80.1 percent.

Liangqi Ren told reporters, ELITE always adhere to focus on high-end microcomputer intelligent rice cooker, its love ofpottery series can be a key addition to ease of operation, but also have cooking, porridge, soup and other functions,advanced technology for its liner material, even also making claypot and yogurt. 梁启仁 also said that in the future the company will launch specially tailored chef recipes, consumers simply in the enterprise can easily download the official website home cook can be comparable with the restaurant's cuisine.