Starbucks has recently launched its own version of Chinese zongzi as part of efforts to cater for local consumer tastes.

Zongzi is a traditional food made of glutinous rice with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves. Starbucks’ zongzi combines Western pastry with traditional Chinese delicacy.

The new market entry is being sold at Starbucks in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai at 11 yuan each ($1.61), much more expensive than other zongzi on the market, which usually retail at around 1.5 yuan ($0.22) each.

A National Business Daily report estimated that the move will bring Starbucks 1.96 million yuan ($287,000) to 2.94 million yuan ($431,000) in sales each year.

The launch of Starbucks’ zongzi followed the publication of its latest financial report, stating that net profit in the second fiscal quarter plummeted by 77 percent from a year earlier.

Chinese food began being incorporated in Starbucks’ menus last year. In October, a Starbucks’ localized pepper and mushroom sandwich was launched in Guangdong Province.

Starbucks began sourcing coffee beans from Yunnan Province two years ago and they became part of the permanent menu in January, the first time that Chinese beans have been used by the world’s largest coffee shop.

President of Starbucks Greater China, Wang Jinlong, was quoted as saying that Starbucks will become even more local in the future by introducing Chinese elements, such as bamboo chairs, to decorate its stores.

Starbucks opened its first store in Beijing in 1999. It now boasts over 350 stores in 26 cities.

Commentators said that during the past 10 years’ of operation in China, the Starbucks brand has won popularity among highly paid and well-educated white-collar workers and is renowned for its representation of Western culture and lifestyle.

According to Wang, Starbucks has become “a symbol of status and success.”