Rural communities in Guizhou develop taste for trade

GUIYANG — In the remote mountains of Guizhou, a landlocked province in southwestern China where tradition runs as deep as its valleys, locals are transforming agricultural products into global commodities, breathing new life into rural communities.

Tucked away in the rugged landscape of Sinan county, a food company churns out over 100,000 boxes daily of fiery sweet potato noodles — a spicy instant snack popular among young eaters.

Last year, thanks to cross-border e-commerce platforms such as Alibaba and JD.com, many of the products were shipped overseas. "Food isn't just for domestic tables, it deserves to serve worldwide palates," said Zhang Cheng, the company's chairman.

Zhang added that the company aims to double its overseas sales to $2 million this year, with a focus on markets South Korea and countries in Southeast Asia, where Chinese instant noodles are helping to satiate a hunger for convenience foods.

In 2023, Sinan became one of Guizhou's first pilot counties to develop "rural foreign trade". To date, its exports have surged past 200 million yuan ($28 million), with products like tea and sweet potato noodles sold to Vietnam, Indonesia and European countries, according to government figures. James Finlay (Guizhou) Tea Company, the county's only foreign-owned enterprise, delivers its products to clients in Poland and the United Kingdom.

Liu Renjun, the company's production manager, said that overseas orders rose following the Chinese New Year, and the company is expected to export 600 metric tons of tea products worth $1.2 million in the first quarter of this year.

A government plan issued by the provincial department of commerce and other departments in 2023 said Guizhou aims to have 500 enterprises engaged in rural exports by 2025, adding 5 billion yuan to annual export revenue in the sector.

Customs data show that last year the province exported several agricultural products, including honey-sugar plums and gastrodia liquor, for the first time.

According to the Agricultural Trade Promotion Center under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China's agricultural exports reached $103 billion in 2024, marking a 4.1 percent increase over the previous year.

In sweet potato noodle production alone, more than 60,000 county residents are involved in the industrial chain from farming and processing to sales. Zhang's company plans to recruit more than 100 people to open more production lines to meet the rising orders.

"Together with domestic orders, we're targeting 1 billion yuan in sales revenue this year," Zhang said.

Xinhua