From the fields to the world’s dining tables: How China’s "local specialties" are winning fans worldwide

Xinhua News Agency, Jinan, March 26 - Title: From the Fields to the World’s Dining Tables: How China’s “Local Specialties” Attract Global Fans

Xinhua News Agency reporters Sun Xiaohui, Gao Tian, Zhang Xinyi

In the workshop of Shenglong Trading Co., Ltd. in Jinxian County, Jining City, Shandong Province, workers are busy sorting and packing bags of garlic. This batch of nearly 70 tons of high-quality garlic is about to board an ocean freighter bound for the European market.

“These garlic are a ‘golden nugget’ that have no trouble selling!” said Wang Wen, the company’s general manager. Since the beginning of this year, the company has exported about 10,000 tons of garlic, primarily to countries like the Netherlands and Dubai, with export volume increasing by nearly 8% compared to the same period last year.

Jinxian County is a distribution, processing, and export center for garlic in China and even the world, with 600,000 acres of garlic planted year-round, over 900 enterprises with independent import and export rights for garlic, more than 80 cross-border e-commerce operators, and products exported to over 170 countries and regions. The annual processing and export volume accounts for more than 70% of the national total.

This is a scene from the Garlic World Industrial Park taken on August 30, 2025, in Jinxian County, Jining City, Shandong Province. Photo by Xinhua News Agency

The story of Jinxian garlic going overseas is a microcosm of how China’s “local specialties” are reaching the world.

From the foie gras of Linyi, Shandong, becoming a new favorite on French dining tables, to the sweet and fragrant Wogan oranges from Yongfu, Guangxi, entering the Southeast Asian market; from the fragrant Chinese toon from Dazhou, Sichuan, filling Canadian consumers’ plates, to the bayberries from Xianju, Zhejiang, being exported to the Middle East—more and more Chinese agricultural products are leaving the fields, leveraging their unique flavors and high quality to “win countless fans” in the global market, allowing the world to share the “taste of China.”

The Central No. 1 Document of 2026 proposed to promote coordination between agricultural product trade and production, advance diversification of agricultural product imports, and support the expansion of exports of advantageous specialty agricultural products. Relevant data shows that in 2025, China’s agricultural product export value reached $104.16 billion, exceeding $100 billion for two consecutive years, with agricultural product export markets covering 227 countries and regions, an increase of 8 from the previous year.

The journey of China’s “local specialties” from the fields to the world’s dining tables is backed by the improvement of product quality.

In “China’s Lemon Town,” Anyue County, Ziyang City, Sichuan Province, each lemon, golden-colored and plump, is rigorously selected and packaged before being shipped to more than 30 countries and regions, including the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. “Being able to establish a foothold in the international market relies on solid quality,” said a local grower.

To strengthen the foundation of quality, local authorities have deepened cooperation with research institutions such as the Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the Citrus Research Institute of Southwest University, establishing a full-chain quality safety traceability system, strictly regulating planting, harvesting, storage, and other processes.

The Central No. 1 Document of 2026 proposed to advance deep processing of agricultural products, cultivate premium agricultural brands, and promote the development of the entire industry chain. Driven by multiple factors including technological cultivation and facility improvements, China’s agricultural product exports are achieving a leap from “selling raw materials” to “selling products,” from “focusing on quantity” to “focusing on quality.”

In Jinxian County, local authorities have partnered with 60 universities and research institutions, developing eight new varieties of garlic, among which “Jin Garlic No. 5” increases yield by 19.39% compared to traditional varieties. At the same time, over 70 well-known domestic and foreign enterprises have been attracted to settle in the area, processing more than 3 million tons of garlic annually. A regular garlic can be “transformed” into more than a hundred products such as garlic oil capsules and garlic amino acid oral solutions through deep processing, significantly increasing its added value.

On May 1, 2025, workers sort garlic on the production line of Shandong Xinnuo Food Technology Co., Ltd. in Jinxian County, Jining City, Shandong Province. Photo by Xinhua News Agency

Exporting agricultural products relies not only on quality but also on branding and channels. The “14th Five-Year Plan” clearly states the need to coordinate the development of technological agriculture, green agriculture, quality agriculture, and brand agriculture, building agriculture into a modernized large industry.

Now, leveraging the high-quality development base of agricultural international trade, many regions in China are increasing support for regional public brands and leading enterprises, promoting the export of “local specialties” from primary product trade to the high-end extension of the brand value chain.

To open up international markets, Anxi County in Fujian Province has established strict production standards for tea gardens, helping tea companies obtain multiple international certifications such as EU organic, US NOP, and Japan JAS, with export prices 30%-50% higher than ordinary tea. The brand influence of Anxi tea continues to rise. Anxi Tieguanyin has been recognized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and UNESCO as a “Globally Important Agricultural Heritage” and “Humanity’s Intangible Cultural Heritage,” and has been included in the first batch of protected listings under the China-EU Geographical Indication Agreement.

Currently, China is laying out a comprehensive and multi-dimensional channel strategy to safeguard the export of agricultural products. Many customs offices have opened “green channels” for the export of fresh agricultural products, implementing “7×24” hour appointment clearance services, significantly shortening clearance times, and ensuring that agricultural products reach their destinations fresh. At the same time, efforts are being made to actively organize enterprises to participate in international exhibitions, building bridges for overseas cooperation, allowing more Chinese “local specialties” to go abroad and reach the world.