In the early ’90s, only one Chinese family in ten owned a refrigerator. Today, 90 percent of urban Chinese households have one. This mass move toward refrigeration had a huge effect on the country’s economy, culture and environment.

Refrigeration is a multi-billion dollar industry in China, heavily subsidized by the government.

China is “refrigerating for the exact same reasons we did” says Nicola Twilley, who wrote about refrigeration in China for New York Times Magazine. “You can’t really feed an urban population of consumers without refrigeration.”

In her article, Twilley visits a factory that belongs to Sanquan, one of the largest frozen dumpling manufacturers in China. Many freezers in Chinese homes are filled with these dumplings, much the way you’d find TV dinners in American freezers.

Listen to the full conversation in the audio player above.