A Thanksgiving feast hosted by China Daily brings together organic food producers and hotels seeking top-quality fare. Wang Kaihao and Sun Ye get into the table talk.

China Daily is thankful. And its staff loves good food. So its editors celebrated that for which it's grateful at a feast last Thursday at Beijing's Temple restaurant with about 70 food and beverage providers, hoteliers and gourmands.

They dined upon fine fare provided by organic farmers and herders, all of whom have been featured in the newspaper's Good Food Diaries that run every Friday.

Jennifer Yeh from Boulangerie Nanda provided artisan sourdough loaves. They were paired with Fromager de Pekin's cheese plates. The water buffalo mozzarella from Yunnan province was a huge hit.

Organic vegetables came from Dr Shi Yan's CSA cooperative farm.

Pure honey was provided by Song Xuezhou, a beekeeper with hives in suburban Beijing.

Si Guijin filled plates with pork from grain-fed pigs that he slaughters when they're about 18 months old. Racks of lamb came courtesy of Aodawei's Great Green Mountain farm in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

TRB's Michelin Chef Martin Brock put all these ingredients together for a marvelous meal. Nobody even noticed the absence of the traditional turkey.

Mouthfuls were washed down with wines from the Xinjiang Uygur and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions. Handmade black sesame Vivi Dolce gelato was served for desert.

Guests included VIPs from several cities and such big brands as Shangri-La, Four Seasons and Starwood.

They said they appreciated China Daily's efforts to link safe food providers with quality-sensitive hoteliers.

"There's not much money to be made in our trade," says Si, the pig rancher from Hebei province's Sanhe.

"But I'm doing everything I can to create a safer environment for my kids. I'm thankful for the chance to meet those who appreciate our efforts to ensure quality without being overly concerned about cost."

He explains his pigs don't eat any genetically modified feed.

"The people here today understand how good our animals are."

Ouyang Yuancheng, who produces the buffalo milk dairy from Yunnan, wrote in a thank-you note that he also appreciated the chance to introduce safe, high-grade food to hoteliers.

"The event was benevolent and classy," he wrote.

"I'm thankful to have met new friends and learned new things."

Vivienne Li says she's grateful this Thanksgiving for enjoying a good business year.

She'll take winter off and open a new shop early next year in Beijing's 798 art district.

Xue Xiaoxian traveled from Wuhai, deep in Inner Mongolia's Gobi Desert, where his wine company Chateau Hansen is based, to the capital for the event.

"It's a great opportunity to meet premiere hoteliers and share our unique flavor with more consumers," Xue says.

He's also thankful for a good business year. Chateau Hansen's sales volume doubled in 2013.

"Today's discussions mean next year might be even better," he says.

Xue, who's also a biology professor at Inner Mongolia University when he's not working as Hansen's chief culture counselor, thanked China Daily for the opportunity.

Hansen's operation has also been credited with counteracting desertification since its 2001 founding.

"What we have back in Inner Mongolia is a carbond-eduction economy," says Xue.

"Organic food is the future of the high-end catering industry, which cares more about where and how the materials are produced. That also goes for wine. China doesn't lack fine wines but needs more influential brands."

Hansen entered the Beijing market in 2009 and now serves as the pillar supplier for hotels owned by Inner Mongolians in the city.

Han Junliang, chief marketing manager in Hansen's Beijing office, says: "We're proud of what we produce in the desert, which distinguishes us nationally - even globally."

All attendees agreed, they truly do have a lot to be thankful for.

Contact the writers at wangkaihao@chinadaily.com.cn and sunye@chinadaily.com.cn.

(China Daily 12/07/2013 page13)