No matter what you call them…muddy buns, ‘dirty dirty’ bread or zang zang bao…the social media frenzy in China over the latest dessert craze has even attracted Fonterra Edgecumbe into the hysteria.
The global trend – best described as a messy chocolate croissant – has urged the co-operative giant to nearly double its butter sheet production from 4500 metric tonnes to 7000 metric tonnes at the factory as the demand for butter to make the buns gets more intense.
Fonterra general manager marketing/global foodservice Susan Cassidy says consumers around the world love the ‘dirty dirty’ bread’s flaky chocolate pastry that’s coated in chocolate ganache and sprinkled with cocoa powder.
“It makes it impossible to keep your face clean while eating,” she says. “They are popular with celebrities who have taken to social media to share images of their ‘muddy bun face’ experience. Even in temperatures of minus ten degrees, crowds of people are queuing for hours to get their hands on their muddy bun.”
Edgecumbe’s operations manager Allan Muggeridge says the first butter sheet will roll off the new butter line on September 1.
“We’ve been watching demand for butter build for a number of years now,” he says. “The building part of the project started in May so it’s been a quick turnaround to get it up and running.”
Fifteen local contractors have been employed to complete the expansion at the site, which employees 380 people.
