Beijing, Apr 22 : China is the hometown of tea; southeast China’s Fujian Province is a major tea producer. There are over 3 million mu (200,000 hectares) of tea gardens across the province, offering diverse tea varieties such as black, white, green and oolong tea.
Xi Jinping worked in Fujian for 17 and a half years, developing a profound “tea bond” with the province.
In April 2002, Xi, then provincial governor of Fujian, visited Yan Jinyou’s home, encouraging him to choose a promising development path suitable to his conditions and focus on tea production, and wished him success in every endeavor.
In 2017, during the BRICS Xiamen Summit, Xi presented a state gift – a gift box encompassing Fujian’s representative premium tea varieties.
Xi called for coordinated efforts to promote tea culture, the development of the tea industry and the use of technology in the sector during an inspection in Fujian on March 22, 2021. He also stressed that the tea industry should be committed to green development, strengthen awareness of branding, and create a better marketing and distribution environment, so as to consolidate industrial foundations for rural revitalization.
Wuyi Mountain, located in northwestern Fujian, is the birthplace of black tea and oolong tea globally.
Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kazan Kremlin in Kazan, Russia, on Oct. 22, 2024.
“Around 400 years ago, the Great Tea Road that connected the two countries went past Kazan, through which tea leaves from China’s Wuyi Mountain region found their way into many Russian households,” Xi said during the meeting.
From the Great Tea Road to the Belt and Road Initiative, Fujian people are embracing a larger circle of friends thanks to its tea.
In Sept. 2013, representatives from China, Mongolia and Russia signed a proposal, initiating the efforts for joint application of the Great Tea Road in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
On Jan. 21, 2021, the first Wuyishan “international freight train” departed from Wuyishan city, travelling all the way to ports in Central Asia, including Almaty in Kazakhstan and Tashkent in Uzbekistan.
On June 5, 2021, the first “Dahongpao (Wuyi rock tea)” train, loaded with tea from northern Fujian and other related goods, was successfully launched, writing a new chapter of the Great Tea Road.
Brought together by tea, it’s a bond that has endured for thousands of years. Fujian tea has built a bridge of friendship between China and the rest of the world.
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