Exhibitors eager to tap Chinese market opportunities at CIIE

A range of foreign "local specialties," such as beef from Argentina, coffee from Colombia, and dairy products from New Zealand have been well-received, with many visitors sampling them on-site at the ongoing 8th China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai.

Foreign agricultural representatives interviewed by the Global Times noted that high-quality products from their countries are competing to enter the Chinese market, and they hope to seize this opportunity.

"It is not the first time we have come here, but it is the first time we are promoting our premium quality of beef, grain-fed Angus beef," Patricio Casiraghi from Frigorifico General PICO S.A. told the Global Times during the CIIE.

We are in the province of La Pampa in the center part of Argentina, in the place where it is green pastures, and we have the best animals in the world. We need to let Chinese customers know about this, and we need to dare to compete against other origins that have been in the market longer, he added.

During the interview, the Global Times noted that a chef in white was grilling beef on an iron griddle inside a transparent display window at the booth of the Argentine Beef Promotion Institute (IPCVA). The large pieces of beef, bigger than the palm of a hand, sizzled as they were placed on the griddle, with the aroma wafting across the exhibition area.

Casiraghi's comments were echoed by Georges Breitschmitt, president of IPCVA.

He cited two key figures: 70 percent of Argentina's beef production is consumed domestically, while the remaining 30 percent is exported. Of that export volume, nearly 70 percent is destined for China. "The Chinese market is promising. We think that we can increase the set of products we sell here, not only commodity, but high-value offers," he said.

The industry has noticed that the beef industry in China is fiercely competitive.

Rodrigo Ariel Gomez, a diplomat from the economic and trade section of the Embassy of Argentina in China, noted that in the past, Argentina's premium beef was primarily exported to the US and Europe. However, with China's growing demand for quality beef, Argentine companies are eager to seize the opportunities presented by the Chinese market, he said.

We have direct competitors with important big producers in the world, such as Brazil, Australia, the US, New Zealand and Uruguay. The competition is quite fierce, but we believe from Argentina that competition makes us better, he said.

This year's CIIE is the first session since June, when China expanded zero-tariff treatment to 53 African countries that have diplomatic ties with China.

At this year's CIIE, exhibitors have come from 123 Belt and Road Initiative partner countries, up 23.1 percent year-on-year. The CIIE has expanded the Africa products section to help African countries having diplomatic ties with China make full use of the policy of zero-tariff treatment for 100 percent of tariff lines. The number of African exhibitors increased by 80 percent year-on-year, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

Xing Xian, head of the Chinese business division at Alvain Honey Co, a Zambian honey trader owned by a Shanghai company, told the Global Times that through the CIIE platform, Zambian honey has not only entered the Chinese market but also received orders from many countries around the world.

"Some pharmaceutical companies in Germany have already started purchasing honey raw materials from our factory in Zambia. Previously, we collaborated with about 100 local beekeepers, but now that number has expanded to 300," he said.

An employee of the honey company said that after graduating from high school, he joined this Chinese-held enterprise. Starting as a manual laborer handling shipments, he has grown into a supervisor and plans to get married in the second half of this year. "I am grateful to my Chinese partners and the opportunities brought by the Chinese market," he said.

The CIIE this year has attracted participants from 155 countries, regions, and international organizations, and the scale of participating enterprises from countries including Canada, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, and Peru reached a record high.

Roy Francis Van Den Hurk, a representative of Milk New Zealand Dairy, told the Global Times during the CIIE that China is a major importer of dairy products, with growing demand for healthy, high-quality goods.

"The CIIE helps improve our relations and helps a lot of smaller New Zealand companies coming here," he said.