This sounds like a victory of the Mexican people against cultural hegemony and a triumph for cultural diversity. Nevertheless, there is another side to the story. While the Mexicans are turning their backs on McDonald's and Taco Bell, they are, however, warmly embracing Coca-Cola — they have imported the biggest Coca-Cola bottling plant in the world, and consume even more of the beverage than the Americans. And Oaxaca, the city that previously turned down McDonald's, now has several stores up and running. Cultural consciousness is not so strong when faced with the power of marketing and the FTA (free trade agreements).

Without a single guided missile or detachment of the Marine Corps, American-style fast food has changed Mexican lifestyle as easily as a McDonald's apple pie, and similar stories are happening every day throughout the world. McDonald's "National Breakfast Day" each March sweeps over Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, with 6 million egg McMuffins given away for free. People in the countries involved stand in queues from 5 o'clock in the morning that day. The various breakfast cultures across these continents are temporarily replaced by the egg McMuffin.

The Mexican chicken wrap from KFC has sparked China's interest in Mexican food. But the fact is that this chicken wrap comes from Texas – it bears no resemblance to any Mexican food. In the same way sweet & sour chicken, crispy orange beef, and fortune cookies are popular throughout the world outside China as "Chinese food", and yet none of them are native Chinese dishes

To avoid the risk of food culture hegemony, it is not enough to insist on traditional foods. Skills in marketing and promoting local foods are also vital. Only when both of these factors are in place can the hegemony of food culture be challenged.

This article is edited and translated from 《人民日报域外听风：“别动我们的玉米粽子”》，source: People's Daily Online, author: Li Qiang