At a recent symposium marking the 95th anniversary of the May 4th Movement in Zhejiang Province, after learning of recent developments, the leaders of Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee fully affirmed their support for initiatives undertaken by Jinyun county in backing the Jinyun sesame seed cake industry. Jinyun county government placed great emphasis on this and asked all villages, towns, and departments to vigorously promote the brand building of Jinyun sesame seed cake, spreading Jinyun culture and increasing farmers’ income.

Jinyun sesame seed cake, also known as Tong cake (Barrel Cake), has a long history. It has been passed down from generation to generation and it enjoys a long standing reputation. It is a famous folk specialty of Jinyun. Jinyun county government and Party committee gave great attention to the event and regarded the support of the Jinyun sesame seed cake industry as a strategy which will enrich its people, thus making the building of the Jinyun sesame seed cake brand vital to success. Meanwhile, they promoted training in the skills and enhanced professional techniques of Jinyun sesame seed cake masters through the "Jinyun sesame seed cake master” training programme offered by Jinyun RTVU, encouraging and supporting those who received such training in finding work and starting their own businesses, making the “Jinyun sesame seed cake” industry bigger and stronger, and building it up as a new engine that will increase farmers’ income in Jinyun county.  

Jinyun RTVU (Jinyun Community College) placed emphasis on organizing all kinds of community education training in combination with local industry. It had seen more than 12,000 students complete training in South American Shrimp cultivation, “Beishan Wolf” e-commerce, and small bath-house management. It has resulted in a positive contribution to increasing farmers’ yield and income, and promoting the development of local specialty industries. It also resulted in a positive effect on the local community and was validated as a demonstration base for the quality training of new-type farmers in Zhejiang province in 2013.

In 2014, according to the requirements of the Party committee and government in the county, Jinyun RTVU concentrated on implementing “Jinyun sesame seed cake master” training, planning to host six training classes and train 300 people. Entrepreneurial farmers and unemployed citizens could take part in the training of “Jinyun sesame seed cake master” for free. Through the eight-day study with 64 credit hours, the trainees could obtain the primary skills certificate for “baking of Jinyun sesame seed cake”, taking exams to confirm their grasp of basic operating skills for baking “Jinyun sesame seed cake”, manners and etiquette of employees in service industries, and in hygienic food preparation. This will promote the standardized operation and production of “Jinyun sesame seed cakes”.

At present, the “Jinyun sesame seed cake master” training has already held two successful sessions. The third training session began on May 19th. Important instruction by Secretary Xia Baolong has further inspired the enthusiasm of the masses to take part in the training. The class has been strongly supported by the general population, with the number of applicants reaching more than 800. At the same time, it also enhanced the responsibility and confidence of Jinyun RTVU to further push forward the brand training project of “Jinyun sesame seed cake master”, providing guaranteed human resources for the “Jinyun sesame seed cake” industry through a programme of standardized training. 

By Shang Xiaojun and Xiang Haizhu, Xinhuanet