In Ningbo, Zhejiang province, people still maintain the tradition of eating rice cakes to welcome in the new year. Recently, the third rice cake festival of Cicheng drew its curtain in a jubilant atmosphere. Amidst a deafening sound of firecrackers, gongs and drums, people happily performed the yangge dance and paraded the dragon lanterns. These sights instantly conjured up the coming of a new year.

　　In the second rice cake festival, a massive rice cake set a Guinness record as the world’s biggest rice cake, coming in at five meters in length, 1.15 meters in width and 2,300 kilograms in weight. Over 1,600 kilogram of rice were used, which would afford a day’s meal for roughly 3,000 people. The cake was prepared by 18 pastry cooks over five days by racing against the clock.

　　This year’s rice cake festival is more focused on people’s active involvement. Photographs are on display in a gallery where people can view the 10,000 mu paddy fields cultivated for the rice cake industry. Also featured are the valley streams that provide water for cake-making and cooking utensils such as vats, stone mills, pressers, stoves and steam boxes. Those who are eager to try their hands at making rice cakes can join in various activities such as grinding rice paste, slicing and piling the cakes. If tired of watching and playing, participants can relax in the rice cake café while sampling rice cakes of various flavors, whether braised, boiled or fried.

　　Cicheng rice cakes have a history dating back hundreds of years. Made from high-quality glutinous rice, they are produced according to a traditional recipe. Nowadays they are available in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Canada, Australia and other countries across the globe. Since the first rice cake festival held in 2003, Cicheng has developed a certificate of origin for its rice cakes.