Culture contest

Why are Panjin crabs not as famous as Yangchenghu's although they are almost the same? asked Wang rhetorically.

"It's culture. The Yangchenghu crab wins because there are many stories associated with it, such as the origin of its name. This helped to form a kind of crab culture which easily spread and attracted customers' attention," Wang said.

"It's a pity that we didn't fully make use of crab legends in the past. We should learn from the people in the Yangcheng Lake area. Fortunately, our local government has undertaken a series of measures to change this situation," said Yan.

The Panjin government has held a crab culture festival annually since 2010.

Furthermore, it opened the only crab museum in North China on Sept 22 in the city. The museum uses a variety of ways, including pictures, specimens and video, to showcase the local crab culture and development of the industry.

Many crab stores are beginning to offer free handbooks on cooking methods or the technique for eating crabs to customers. Also, you can find sauces for cooking the crustacean and tools for eating it in the stores.

"Nowadays, we not only sell our products but also sell crab culture," crab businessman Bai said.