"Made in China" has once again become a point of interest at the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress as deputies sit down to talk about how to promote China's manufacturing industry through innovation.

A debate on why Chinese people go all the way to Japan to purchase home appliances, such as rice cookers, has prompted deputies, mostly entrepreneurs, to consider how to encourage a better image of Chinese brands and goods.

Many Chinese flocked to Japan to buy toilet seats as souvenirs during last year's Spring Festival, making a splash in the media.

Some deputies pointed out that although China is a leading country in manufacturing, it has produced few internationally recognized brands.

A ranking in 2015 listed Chinese innovation capabilities in 18th place with China's equipment manufacturing making up one third of the global market. However, China is not good at churning out high-quality items such as ball pens and rice cookers, a fact pointing to China's disadvantages in manufacturing capability.

Drawing inspiration from Germany's "Industry 4.0," China launched a "Made in China 2025" strategy in 2015 to comprehensively upgrade its manufacturing industry.

"Only innovation can lead to quality," said Li Dongsheng, chairman and CEO of the TCL Corporation. "China's manufacturing has come to a crossroads and supply-side reform is the only solution."

"Compared to the past, consumers have higher standards for the quality of their goods," said Yuan Liqun, vice chairman of Midea Group. "Enterprises have to proactively rise to the challenge posed by the change."

According to statistics, one yuan invested in manufacturing can generate 1.48 yuan worth of output value.

The recently-released government work report revealed that China "will encourage enterprises to use flexible and custom-tailored production processes and foster a spirit of craftsmanship that strives for the best, so that more types of products, products of a higher quality, and brand products will be made."

"The mediocre quality of China-made goods is partly due to a lack of craftsmanship," said Lei Jun, founder and CEO of Chinese smartphone vendor Xiaomi.

He pointed out that countries like Japan have gone through a shift from low to high-end manufacturing, so should China.

Dong Mingzhu, president of Gree Electric Appliances, advised Chinese companies to rebuild their competitiveness and forge ahead with reform.

"There are two major issues that need addressing in the first place," she said, "One is strengthening intellectual patent protection and the other is supporting China-made goods."