How many uses can a simple grain of corn have? In Zhucheng, Weifang, Shandong, the answer is being constantly redefined.
Inside the intelligent production workshop of Phase I of Dongxiao Biotechnology Co., Ltd.'s healthcare project, one can see plump, golden corn kernels moving steadily along a fully automated feeding system through a sealed observation corridor. After undergoing multiple processes, they are transformed into fine, pure white functional food ingredients like polydextrose and isomaltooligosaccharide.
"Through deep processing driven by technologies like synthetic biology, Dongxiao Biotechnology has increased the value of a single corn kernel by 5 to 20 times," said Zan Minggang, the plant manager. The company processes 1.6 million tons of corn annually, with its products sold in over 100 countries and regions.
This exemplifies Zhucheng's efforts to build two pillar industrial clusters—one in health food and another in bio-manufacturing, each valued in the tens of billions—and to promote cross-industry integration and collaborative advancement. As a national demonstration zone for food industry clusters, Zhucheng is systematically developing these two parallel yet deeply intertwined industrial chains based on its existing industrial foundation, aiming to unlock new growth momentum through chain coordination and fusion.
In recent years, as major local agricultural companies like Zhucheng Foreign Trade Co., Ltd. and Shandong Delisi Food Co., Ltd. have expanded their poultry and livestock farming, the demand for corn conversion has surged. Zhucheng has proactively extended and strengthened its industrial chains, guiding enterprises to start with corn starch and gradually expand into sectors like health foods, functional sugar alcohols, and amino acids. This has fostered a continuously growing industrial chain from starch, starch sugar alcohols, and amino acids to solid beverages and bio-based materials. Within this, segments like corn deep processing and bio-fermentation are not only distinct specialty industries but also serve as crucial upstream support and value-adding components for the health food sector. Sustained investment has nurtured two leading enterprises, Dongxiao Biotechnology and Xingmao Corn, each with revenues exceeding ten billion.
Inside the production workshop of the Zhucheng Foreign Trade Health Food Industrial Park, chickens hang neatly on a high-speed conveyor chain, moving smoothly along a standardized production line where automated defeathering and intelligent cutting are seamlessly completed. "From defeathering to precise segmentation and initial sorting, a chicken completes the entire processing flow in just two minutes," explained Zhao Zongjia, the slaughtering manager. The company has introduced fully automated slaughtering lines from the Netherlands and Denmark, ensuring uniform product specifications and appearance through efficient and precise cutting. As a national key leading enterprise in agricultural industrialization, Zhucheng Foreign Trade aligns with international standards, holds multiple international certifications, and has led the formulation of several national standards.
Standards are the cornerstone of high-quality industrial development and a passport to global competition. Zhucheng has integrated standardization throughout every link of the health food industrial chain, establishing a comprehensive system from farm to factory. The city has consolidated and enhanced the competitive edge of its food industry, taking the lead in formulating China's first international standard in poultry slaughtering, the "Code of Practice for Chicken Slaughtering," thereby increasing the industry's influence.
Today, from the deep processing of livestock and poultry products to the bioconversion of corn, and from single products to a comprehensive product matrix, Zhucheng is driving the integration, interconnection, and complementary advantages of its health food and bio-manufacturing industries. This has created a fully integrated industrial development model encompassing breeding, processing, and sales, and integrating trade, industry, and agriculture.
Currently, in the workshop of the Defuji High-end Health Food Project, newly introduced intelligent production equipment is neatly arranged, with digital control screens displaying real-time production parameters as the project enters its final trial production phase. "We aim to build this project into a world-class digital, intelligent, and high-standard production and processing base," said the company's General Manager, Yu Shuiping. Upon completion, the project's annual production capacity will reach 70,000 tons.
Beyond innovating in traditional sectors, Zhucheng is also leveraging its bio-manufacturing technological strengths to actively explore new avenues aligned with health food industry trends, thereby enriching the "new recipe" of its health food industrial chain.
In the maltose production workshop of Shandong Guyu Biotechnology Co., Ltd., several thick, gleaming sealed pipes are particularly noticeable. These pipes serve as dedicated "raw material express lanes," directly connected to the production workshop of neighboring Zhucheng Xingmao Corn Development Co., Ltd.. The corn starch produced next door is transported through these pipes in a fully sealed, zero-exposure, zero-transfer process directly into Guyu's production line. Raw materials leave one production line and immediately enter the next for processing. This not only improves production efficiency but also allows both companies to ensure product quality while significantly reducing transportation and storage costs, creating a mutually beneficial win-win situation for upstream and downstream enterprises.
Zhucheng is proactively breaking down barriers between enterprises and industries, promoting deep integration across all stages from raw material supply, R&D, and production to deep processing and cold chain logistics. This is gradually building a modern industrial ecosystem characterized by "leading enterprises, complete chains, comprehensive supporting services, and cluster development."