The Office Escape Project: Can a writer sell quality produce?

Can three people accustomed to long hours behind computer screens actually cope when they decide to sell vegetables at a community eco-shop in Beijing’s Sanyuanqiao?

Facing endless screens, data, and meetings every day, have you ever wondered: what is the point of all this? In this accelerated era, countless streams of information flash past our eyes and fingertips, yet many of us have lost a tangible sense of our work and lives. There are even moments when a powerful impulse strikes: the desire to do something concrete, something you can actually see and touch—’manual labour’.

In this episode of Food Talk__, we actually rolled up our sleeves and got to work. Hosted by Foodthink__’s founding editor, Tianle, we invited veteran media professional and former Caixin assistant editor-in-chief Huang Chen (‘Cousin’), as well as two young Foodthink colleagues, Yuyang and Li Ye.

Leaving their cramped workstations behind, they stepped into the raw reality of selling vegetables. As they bustled around the counters and produce stalls, what happened? What did they observe, and what did they realise? The three guests share their authentic experiences of working in the veg shop:

From the grand narratives of data journalism to debating which sweet potato tastes better; from reporting on algorithm-driven sorting systems to personally negotiating with a customer over whether to ‘swap this batch of tomatoes for another’. Amidst the physical labour of stacking crates, sorting produce, and photographing new arrivals, they found a long-lost sense of stability and a feeling of being ‘truly alive’.

As it turns out, selling vegetables is more than just a job; it is a way of reconnecting with the world. Through this ‘cross-boundary’ manual labour, they didn’t just rediscover *wutacai* or learn the secrets of steaming *wotou* buns; in this atomised city, they saw how food can reconnect consumers, eco-farmers, and shop staff within the physical space of a vegetable store, rebuilding a concrete social support system that had long been missing.

Ultimately, this is not an episode about ‘changing careers’, but a sincere conversation about ways of working, social structures, and bodily experience. It is about how we can step away from our screens and reconcile with the physical world through the work of our hands.

If you have ever longed to temporarily escape the surround-sound of electronic screens, this episode might be for you.

Discussion: Would you try your hand at manual labour to find a sense of ‘tangibility’? We invite you to share your stories in the comments.

Guest/s of the Session

Huang Chen ‘Cousin’, former assistant editor-in-chief of Caixin and founder of the ‘Data, Hello’ workshop. Currently a long-term volunteer at ‘Ji Shi’, the Sanyuanqiao community eco-shop—a vegetable seller bridging the gap between macro-data and concrete daily life.

Yuyang

Editor at Foodthink, currently busy pickling vegetables.

Li Ye

Newly appointed project officer at Foodthink and the new host of Food Talk.

Host of the Session

Tianle

Founding editor of Foodthink and convener of the Beijing Organic Farmers Market.

Special Preview: Are you curious about the ID badges worn by Tianle, Li Ye, and Yuyang? It’s time to reveal the truth—they are actually members of Foodthink’s ‘Veg-Selling Dream Team’!

On Saturday, 7th February, from 10:00 to 22:00, we will be taking over the Beijing Organic Farmers Market community shop in Sanyuanqiao—occupying Ji Shi!To ensure everything runs smoothly, several colleagues have spent the last three months as ‘trainees’, completing 48 hours of ‘undercover training’ at Ji Shi.

During those 12 hours of occupying Ji Shi, eight Foodthink colleagues will transform from wordsmiths into shop assistants, stepping out of their creative comfort zones and into the realm of real labour: coordinating with farmers, serving customers, sorting and packing, tidying shelves, handling the till… oh, and our house speciality—preparing their own staff meals. This is both a Foodthink annual party and a special year-end report we are submitting to our readers.

Whether you want to test our vegetable-selling skills, meet the Foodthink team in person, or simply pick up some great produce, please join us, our ‘spiritual shareholders’, at Sanyuanqiao Lil巷 this Saturday, 7th February. See you there!

See more highlights from the ‘Jishi Takeover’.

Located in Phoenix Hub, Sanyuanqiao, Beijing, Jishi is a small, thoughtfully designed community vegetable shop. Photo credit: Li Ye

Vegetables and fruits from our ecological farmers might not always look perfect, but they are certainly grown with skill and care. Photo credit: Li Ye, Huang Chen

The quirky little things in the shop: Sichuan pickles marked ‘Not for Sale’ and a pot of naturally dried enoki mushrooms. Photo credit: Li Ye

What do you actually eat when working in a community vegetable shop where you have to cook for yourself? Left: A day of Biao Jie cooking on shift; Right: Toast-pizzas made by the Jishi team. Photo credit: Huang Chen, Li Ye

Jishi is more than just a vegetable shop; it is also a small-farmer’s table. Photo credit: Li Ye

It is also a showcase for ecological agriculture and sustainable development. Photo credit: Li Ye

At Jishi, you can get to know your food. Even if you don’t need to buy groceries, you can still wander through and spend some time in this public space. Photo credit: Li Ye

Timeline

02:20 Why did a media professional, once an “academic overachiever”, decide to sell vegetables?06:32 The specific daily tasks of a greengrocer’s assistant

10:25 Observations on offline and online consumption: Do we still need physical greengrocers?

17:33 E-commerce sorters trapped in the system: Is the algorithm optimising or alienating labour?

22:22 Mental detox: Why today’s youth are becoming “obsessed with manual labour”

24:55 Combating anxiety: How selling vegetables helps me live in the moment

29:21 In a hectic, atomised society, it is worth sacrificing a bit of efficiency for genuine human connection

35:41 Do support systems exist in the workplace?

40:10 Rethinking utopia: In reality, we are doing the “manual labour” of our dreams

46:50 Beijing in 2015: An economic boom period that demanded an escape

49:40 Even the Trisolarans couldn’t fathom the human tendency to not practice what they preach

53:43 Beneath the grand narratives are real people; we are more than just 5.0% of national economic growth

56:36 What trivial and essential knowledge can be gained from selling vegetables? What is best to eat in a Northern winter?

01:01:06 Returning to the concrete, to human warmth, and to human nature

Guest/s of the Session

Host of the Session

Timeline

Published by Foodthink