Now, Chinese astronaut food to be sold in supermarkets

Dishes like roast pork, stewed duck, Cantaloupe chips and taro-stuffed mooncake, a hockey puck-shaped confection usually made up of a thin layer of pastry and a sweet filling like lotus-seed paste, which are standard fare for Chinese astronauts, will soon be available in supermarkets.

New Delhi, July 25 : Dishes like roast pork, stewed duck, Cantaloupe chips and taro-stuffed mooncake, a hockey puck-shaped confection usually made up of a thin layer of pastry and a sweet filling like lotus-seed paste, which are standard fare for Chinese astronauts, will soon be available in supermarkets.

According to The China Daily, the Scientific Research and Training Center for Chinese Astronauts and a Shanghai-based food company have developed over 60 space dishes -- including meat, vegetables, starches and desserts -- for the country's space program.

Confident about the products' appeal, the center began cooperation for mass production with the manufacturers in 2006.

The space food is not only tasty, it also provides the 2,400 calories of energy required by an astronaut, said Chen Bin, head of the center's food and nutrition branch.

Chen said they have also developed chocolate bars and other desserts for the astronauts, aslo known as taikonauts, going on the next manned space flight in 2008.

It has not been revealed when these goodies will be marketed for the general public.

ANI