Master Kong (康师傅, Kang Shi Fu) is the dominant instant-noodle brand in mainland China and one of the largest instant-noodle producers in the world. The company was founded in 1991 in Tianjin by four brothers surnamed Wei, originally from Changhua County, Taiwan — making Master Kong a Taiwanese-founded enterprise operating principally in the mainland Chinese market.
The corporate parent, Tingyi (Cayman Islands) Holding Corporation, listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 1996 and is jointly owned at roughly 33.48% each by Taiwan's Ting Hsin International Group and Japan's Sanyo Foods (the Sapporo Ichiban parent). In addition to instant noodles, the group runs China's largest ready-to-drink tea portfolio — with approximately 38% RTD-tea penetration, well ahead of competitors — plus baked goods, bottled water, and soft drinks. Strategic alliances with PepsiCo (2011, non-alcoholic beverages in China) and Starbucks (2015, ready-to-drink coffee) broadened the beverage business further.
In instant noodles specifically, Master Kong's flagship is the Spicy Beef (紅燒牛肉) line — now a cultural reference in Chinese urban life. Roasted Beef, Artificial Pork, Sauerkraut Beef, and Japanese-style soy broth variants round out the catalogue. In 2019 Master Kong held 43.3% of China's instant-noodle market, ranking first by a comfortable margin. The brand withdrew from Taiwanese distribution by 2015 following several mainland food-safety incidents.