Instant noodles used one tenth of China's wheat crop last year and had sales of 29.8 billion yuan (3.7 billion US dollars), making China the number one maker of cheap convenient food, People’s Daily reported. The paper quoted Meng Suhe, secretary general of the China Association of Food Science and Technology, as saying that the quality of China-made instant noodle meets international food safety standards. The key to the development trend of the fast food industry lies in improving the seasoning ingredients and diversifying product mix. Meng said that fast food makers are developing more seasonings based on Chinese traditional dishes. The industry needs more research and development backup from research institutes.