(Yicai Global) Sept. 8 -- Mooncake sales jumped on JD.Com, one of the biggest e-commerce platforms in China, as the country is approaching this year's Mid-Autumn Festival while consumers are seeking healthier options.

The gross merchandise volume of the sweet bakery products increased by more than 70 percent in the first half of this year from a year ago, the Beijing-based company said in a report published yesterday. Last month, such sales surged by 22 times from July. This year's Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated with a three-day holiday starting Sept. 10.

JD.Com had more than 100 different flavors of mooncakes. Over 90 percent of all sales consisted of products packaged in gift boxes as it is usual to give away such delicacies. Traditional Cantonese-style mooncakes were the most popular category of items, followed by Beijing-style and Suzhou-style confectionaries, according to survey results.

Purchasing channels are changing, said Liu Chang, chief analyst at Founder Securities. But online sales channels for mooncakes are not predicted to exceed physical ones due to limited volumes, Liu added.

Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, sold CNY1.1 billion (USD158 million) worth of mooncakes over the 30 days ended Sept. 4, according to data from e-commerce research agency Feigua. Mooncakes available for purchase on the platform were priced at CNY77 (USD11) on average.

Healthier eating habits are becoming more popular. The biggest trend is low sugar this year. Sales of emerging flavors, including sugar-free, snow skin, and lava custard cakes, jumped almost 35 percent over the past two weeks from a year ago, according to data from Alibaba Group Holding's platforms Taobao and Tmall. Moreover, young people appreciate small confectionaries. Thereby, the available mooncakes have shrunk to as small as 35 grams from 180 grams.

The food industry is transforming so the common trend is healthier products with high quality, according to the JD.Com report. Meanwhile, consumers are prioritizing practical value instead of exquisite packaging.

There are products for all budgets. On Kuaishou, the main rival to Douyin in China, sales of a Daoxiangcun-branded mooncake gift box, priced at CNY240 (USD35), are expected to reach CNY47.6 million (USD6.8 million). Sales of another DXC-branded gift box, priced at CNY70 each, are set to reach CNY44.5 million.

Editors: Shi Yi, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi