I’ve had the pleasure of working with quite a few companies on these Meet The Manufacturer series over the years. This was a very unique experience – I’ve tried many products from the company in the past but never had access to such a wide range. They send an enormous 400 pound pallet of their products! This is an interview that I conducted with Sun Shun Fuk, makers of the Sau Tao range of products.
Interview with Sun Shun Fuk * Product Samples from Sun Shun Fuk * Sau Tao Tom Yum Kung Ho Fan * Sau Tao Laksa Flavour Trolley Noodles * Sau Tao Dried Mix Rice Vermicelli XO Sauce Flavour * Sau Tao Jiangnan Style Noodle – XO Shallot Sauce * Sau Tao Xiao Qiao Rice Vermicelli Hot & Sour Soup Flavour * Sau Tao QQ Vermicelli Pork & Pickled Mustard Flavour * Sau Tao Taiwanese Style Sliced Noodle Shallot Oil Flavour * Sau Tao Trolley Noodle Beef Soup Flavour * Sau Tao Pork Bone Flavour Sichuan Noodle * Sau Tao E-Fu Noodle Curry Lobster Soup Flavour * Sau Tao Non-Fried Abalone Noodle * Sau Tao Ho Fan Pork Rib Soup Flavour * Sau Tao Laksa Flavour Rice Vermicelli * Sau Tao Taiwanese Style Sliced Noodle Pepper & Sesame Flavour * Sau Tao Hot & Sour Flavour Ramen
Interview With Sun Shun Fuk – Hong Kong
THE RAMEN RATER> Thank you for agreeing to this interview! To start, can you tell my readers about the history of Sau Tao?
SUN SHUN FUK> Sun Shun Fuk Foods, Ltd (SSF) was founded in 1960 in Hong Kong by Mr. Cheng Yiu Pang. Our company is one of the most leading food suppliers in Hong Kong with an extensive range of products. Over the past 60 years, SSF has grown from a small scale traditional hand-made plant, to nowadays it is a one of the key players in Hong Kong and the network covering more than 100 countries worldwide.
TRR> For my readers who might now be familiar with your product lines, can you give a little information about them please?
SUN SHUN FUK> We have various types of noodles, such as gift box series, South Asian Style, Non-fried instant noodles, plain noodles, noodles cake, flour vermicelli (Mee Suah), hand shaped noodle, semi-fresh noodles. Apart from noodles market, we are also expanding the frozen product, abalone and seasoning.
TRR> What was the first product you produced?
SUN SHUN FUK> “Mee Suah” was the first and significant product we launched.
TRR> Your company is located in Hong Kong. Can you tell us a little about your country?
SUN SHUN FUK> Hong Kong is an international city and well known as food paradise. Hong Kong have many popular noodle dishes as Hongkonger like eating noodles very much, such as cart noodle, wonton noodles and stir-fried beef noodles.
TRR> Do you have any new varieties you’re especially proud of?
SUN SHUN FUK> We especially proud of traditional handmade noodle, such as abalone noodle, scallop noodle and shrimp noodle. We also designed a gift box package for CNY gifting. Nowadays, our gift package product has become one of the significant symbols of Chinese New Year. Sau Tao gift pack noodles always are people’s first thought when selecting the gift for parents or friends.
TRR> How many instant noodle products do you produce every year?
SUN SHUN FUK> We have 4 factories in mainland, and supply to the global market. However, we are not able to disclose the exact number.
TRR> How do you decide what kinds of new products to manufacture?
SUN SHUN FUK> We usually conduct a marketing research to see which noodles products are on trend before launching new product. Also, healthy is the first priority. We would like to promote healthy eating habit through our product.
TRR> How does your noodle making process differ from other instant noodle manufacturers?
SUN SHUN FUK> Non-fried noodle is the main difference between other brand. “Health is important” is the core value of Sau Tao, Sau Tao is dedicated to produce healthy and non-fried noodles.
TRR> Are instant noodles the only products you make?
SUN SHUN FUK> Of course not! Sun Shun Fuk’s leading brand-Sau Tao is now offering over 150 different kinds of noodle and seasoning products, ranging from non-fried instant pouch noodles, instant bowl noodles, premium noodle gift sets, plain oriental noodles, to fresh noodles.
TRR> A lot of people are concerned with their sodium intake. How would you recommend people enjoy your product as part of a healthy meal?
SUN SHUN FUK> If people are concerned with their sodium intake, we suggested them to use half of the seasoning bag and not drink the soup. Also, people can add some fresh meat and vegetable to make the noodles healthier.
TRR> Are you involved in in your local community or participate in charities?
SUN SHUN FUK> Yes, we established a Sau Tao charity team expressing our care to the elderly by visiting and distributing noodles to them every month. Also, we cooperated with some local charity such as ‘Feeding Hong Kong’, ‘helping hand’etc to arrange the free product to those elderly.
TRR> Are there any new products coming soon?
SUN SHUN FUK> Yes, sure. We would like to expand the youth market in the future, so our new products will focus on something innovative and bold. In the years to come, we will continuously strengthen the brand position, offer added-value customer services, and provide customers a wide range of products with uncontested benefits.
TRR> In what countries are your products popular? Do people enjoy them differently in different places?
SUN SHUN FUK> We have an extensive distribution network covering major supermarket chains and catering sectors in Hong Kong. Besides Hong Kong, the company has been aggressively extending its market coverage to more than 100 countries around the globe including the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, Southeast Asia. Our Chinese Style Plain Noodle products are quite popular in western country.
TRR> When you make noodles for yourself, what do you like to add to them to make them extra special?
SUN SHUN FUK> To make the quick and easy noodle without any workload, we would suggest to add a soft boiled egg or dumpling which is easy to cook and time saving. Also, if you have spare time, We would suggest people to add some fresh ingredients e.g vegetables and meat to make the noodle more tasty.
THE RAMEN RATER> Thank you very much for this opportunity to learn about Sau Tao and your products.
