A bakery in Nanjing, South China’s Jiangsu province, sells chess pieces made from mooncakes, Sept 2, 2011.[Photo/CFP]

Medium and low-priced moon cakes in simple packaging, which were rare in the market for years, are back and among the most popular products in the market in the run-up to Mid-Autumn Festival. Comments:

Moon cakes have for long been the favored gift during Mid-Autumn Festival. But with increasingly more added value in recent years raising their prices exorbitantly, they were used as bribe in many underhand deals. Thanks to over-packaging, moon cakes had become more expensive, and unaffordable for many people; they were also a huge waste of resources. But it seems the moon cake market is returning to normal given the growing popularity of medium and low-priced products. Hopefully, the trend will continue.

eastday.com, Sept 15

As one of the most important traditional festivals in China, Mid-Autumn Festival is considered an occasion of reunion and bonding for Chinese families. To celebrate the festival, family members enjoy moon cakes together, for they believe the pastries will help strengthen their bonds. The brisk sale of fairly priced moon cakes is a good start, for it will not only prevent the good tradition from being further polluted by the stink of money, but also bring back its original cultural connotation. The popularity of fairly priced moon cakes also shows people have become more aware of environmental protection and resource conservation, because such products are not over-packaged.

Lanzhou Daily, Sept 16

It is good news for the public that moon cake prices have dropped to normal levels. The previously sky-high prices of moon cakes prevented many people from celebrating the occasion with this traditional pastry, which was against the essence of the traditional festival. This positive change has saved both consumers' money and social resources, and more importantly, signifies the return of traditional values with emphasis on the spiritual aspect of Mid-Autumn Festival. Let us hope enjoying traditional delicacies on other special occasions will become the trend and festivals will regain their to-earth character.

Qingyuan Daily, Sept 11