In a first, Vietnam bakery ships ‘American’ mooncakes

Ho Chi Minh City-based ABC Bakery is making its first shipment of mooncakes with “American” ingredients to the U.S., its owner Kao Sieu Luc said Monday.

“This is the first time we are shipping mooncakes following a shipment of baked goods to the United States in 2018,” Luc, dubbed the “Bread King” in HCMC, said during a visit to his bakery by U.S. Consul General Susan Burns.

“We have used American ingredients like wheat, blueberry, almond slices, cream and cheese to serve the U.S. market,” he added, without disclosing the exact schedule and value of the shipment. The traditional mooncake has a salted-egg filling.

Mooncakes are a must-have dish for the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrated in several Asian countries. In Vietnam, these cakes enter the market about a month before the full moon day of the eighth lunar month.

Francis Lee, representative of the California Milk Advisory Board and U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council in Vietnam, was also present at the bakery.

He said: “We are very proud to present to you one of the highlights of our latest collaboration with ABC Bakery: the California cream cheese mooncakes.

“These mooncakes are not only available at ABC Bakery’s outlets across Vietnam. They will be shipped to California as a gift to our dairy farmers over there. We are so eager to receive their feedback. We hope they will enjoy these mooncakes as much as we do here.”

Lee said his first collaboration with Chef Kao in 2018 resulted in a baked goods shipment from ABC Bakery to the U.S. and introduced California dairy products to bakeries in Vietnam.

“Our collaboration is a symbol of the close connection between the United States and Vietnam, especially in agriculture. We hope to have more opportunities to bring California dairy products to Vietnam,” he added.

U.S. Consul General Burns said she liked the new mooncakes.

“Today’s event is an everyday example of how both the United States and Vietnam benefit when we come together in friendship and partnership. I understand Chef Kao has a long history of making innovative products combining U.S. and Vietnamese ingredients.

“Food and agriculture are an important part of the U.S.-Vietnam relationship, and we are both important markets for each other’s agricultural products.”

The diplomat added: “You may not know this, but the United States is the largest cheese producing country in the world and California is the second-largest cheese-producing state in the United States.”

She also noted the two countries were marking this year the 10-year anniversary of their comprehensive partnership.

U.S. President Joe Biden is due to visit Vietnam in mid-September in a reported push upgrade bilateral ties to that of a strategic partnership. However, the White House has not publicized the agenda for the upcoming visit.

Chef Kao, 63, started out with his business in 1989 and has won many international awards for his breads and cakes since. ABC Bakery products are supplied to major brands like Starbucks, KFC, Lotteria, Jollibee and Domino’s Pizza in Vietnam.

In 1989, Luc set up his own Duc Phat Bakery after marrying a woman in HCMC. When the couple split in 2005, he gave the Duc Phat name to her and founded the ABC Bakery, naming it after his three children – Angela, Bruce and Christine. The bakery remains a family business with the children holding executive positions. Kao Christine is deputy CEO.

Among the novelties introduced by ABC Bakery are pink, dragon fruit-infused baked goods in March 2020, which became an instant hit in the market. After the chef’s introduction of the new bread, KFC launched a new chicken sandwich using it.

Kao said he made the pink baked goods with dragon fruit to help growers of the fruit sell their produce after the Covid-19 outbreaks.