Chinese growers aim to expand export of freshly picked waxberries

Chinese growers are planning to expand the export of fresh waxberries harvested in east China's Zhejiang Province to more countries in addition to current marketplaces in Europe and Southeast Asia this year.

The waxberries grew in greenhouses in Zhejiang's Qingtian County were picked in the early morning of Sunday before loaded to refrigerated vehicles and transported to a local intensive processing and storage park for sorting and packaging, then sent to Pudong Airport in neighboring Shanghai for flight to European marketplaces including Madrid.

"This shipment consists of a total of 450 boxes of waxberries for export to for Spain. They were picked in the morning, packaged in the factory in the afternoon, and shipped to Shanghai in the evening, and should be able to arrive in Madrid in 24 hours," said Xia Xiaoqing, an employee of a local trade company.

The waxberry is popular throughout China for its taste and nutritive value. This versatile fruit is also plugged as the next big "super fruit" due to its high content of antioxidants.

But the fruit has a short shelf life and is difficult to store. Therefore, producers in Qingtian County have adopted a new anti-atomization cold chain packaging to keep the freshness during long-distance shipment.

According to local culture and tourism authorities, the Qingtian waxberries are now able to reach 146 cities across China via high-speed trains and cargo flights, and can even arrive in 19 Chinese cities on the day of picking.

The Qingtian waxberries have also reached consumers in Europe and Southeast Asia. In 2023, Qingtian County exported more than 20 tons of waxberries, with a sales volume of 370,000 euros.

The waxberry growers are planning to further expand the export and let their high-quality fruits enter more overseas markets.

"We will export them to more countries this year, like Britain, France, plus Singapore and Indonesia. So, the sales volume of this year is likely to double that of last year," Xia said.

Chinese growers aim to expand export of freshly picked waxberries

The China-Laos Railway, a landmark project of the Belt and Road Initiative, has handled 487,000 cross-border trips with passengers from 112 countries and regions in the past two years, according to China Railway Kunming Group.

Since the cross-border passenger service was officially launched on April 13, 2023, the railway linking Kunming of southwest China's Yunnan Province and Vientiane, the capital city of Laos, has facilitated increased trade, tourism, and cultural exchange between the two countries.

This year, tourist bookings from ASEAN countries to Xishuangbanna, a popular tourist destination in Yunnan Province, have increased by more than 250 percent this year, with hotel occupancy rates consistently exceeding 85 percent and a surge of over 35 percent in tourism spending.

To meet growing passenger demand, railway authorities have taken a series of targeted measures, including increasing the international passenger trains between Xishuangbanna and Laos' Luang Prabang from four to six days per week, and adding a stop at Nateuy station in Laos.

The number of cross-border passenger seats per train has increased from 250 at the outset to 390, while daily inbound and outbound passenger flow has surged from 300 to a peak of 1,300.

The railway has also stimulated investment and trade along the route. The Saysettha Development Zone in Vientiane has attracted over 150 companies from nine countries and regions, including China, Japan, and Malaysia, generating an annual output of over 2 billion U.S. dollars.

China-Laos Railway handles over 480,000 cross-border trips in 2 years