HARBIN - In just seconds, Li Mengdi purchased a crate of fresh maize online from his hometown in Heilongjiang province.

The order, placed at his workplace in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, some 2,000 kilometers away, was not born from a longing for home, but for the delicious taste of the variety of corn from Suihua.

Maize farmers in Heilongjiang traditionally sold kernels as feed and for industrial products. Despite not being very tasty, the corn was edible.