Fresh flowers from inland China hit Central Asian market
LANZHOU, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- In just 48 hours, fresh roses in the Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture in northwest China's Gansu Province can be cut and placed in vases in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
This year, roses from the inland region have not only thrived in domestic markets, but have also made significant inroads into the Central Asian market, thanks to novel agricultural technologies, streamlined customs services and cold-chain transport.
Linxia City, located in the Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, is not traditionally a flower-growing area, but lately, it has leveraged its unique climate conditions -- ample sunshine, significant diurnal temperature variation and cool summers -- to create an optimal environment for flower cultivation.
In recent years, the city has been building itself into a "charming flower capital" and "park city." It has actively promoted agri-tech innovation and vigorously developed its fresh-cut flower industry.
Roses at the standardized planting base of Yinong Flower Port in Linxia City bloom continuously throughout the year. The base's smart greenhouses are equipped with advanced technological facilities such as automated environmental control systems and integrated water and fertilizer systems.
The greenhouse control system links every aspect of rose cultivation, precisely managing elements like skylights and energy curtains to achieve the automated, standardized and scientific management of soilless rose cultivation.
The greenhouses are also equipped with ventilation and temperature control systems, as well as water and fertilizer recycling and disinfection irrigation systems, ensuring a stable supply of fresh flowers all year round.
Currently, the base cultivates 10 varieties and eight colors of roses. Its daily output is 180,000 stems, with an annual production exceeding 60 million. These fresh-cut roses are sold in major domestic cities and overseas markets, according to the planting base.
Li Zetian, deputy general manager of Gansu Huazhizhou Trading Co., Ltd., which is responsible for the base's rose sales, said that the roses have rich colors and thick petals, with a vase life three to five days longer than that of other flowers.
These quality advantages have laid the foundation for Linxia roses to enter international markets, Li noted.
"Many flowers in Kazakhstan are imports, which are relatively expensive. With the advancement of the Belt and Road Initiative, our market research has found a surge in demand for Chinese flowers in Kazakhstan, indicating great potential for cooperation," Li said.
Li's company provides a stable supply of fresh flowers and can leverage Almaty's strengths in its customs clearance efficiency, warehousing management and regional logistics network to minimize the time between picking and delivery to overseas consumers. "Linxia flowers can thus maintain a vase life of at least 10 days for Kazakh consumers."
The latest data shows that in the first half of this year, fresh-cut roses from Linxia City were exported to Central Asian countries such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan continuously via cold-chain logistics.
In the first six months, a total of 15 trucks of flowers were transported, each carrying over 100,000 stems -- amounting to more than 1.5 million stems in total, according to Li.
The Central Asian flower market has broad prospects, and Li's company has established an initial customer base there. In mid-July, it also cooperated with a Kazakh flower company to establish an overseas warehouse in Almaty and gradually promote the construction of its Almaty branch.
Through the move, the company aims to expand into the Russian and Eastern European markets, and to bring Linxia roses to more overseas consumers with the help of overseas warehouses, Li said.
Long Shanyi, an official of the city's agriculture and rural affairs bureau, said that local agricultural authorities have provided regular technical guidance on flower cultivation to enterprises, helping Linxia flowers reach more domestic and international consumers in the best possible condition.
"We also hope to make use of this opportunity for cross-border cooperation to promote the in-depth exchange of Chinese flower culture and Central Asian horticultural skills," Long said.
China is the world's largest flower producer and an important flower-trading country. The latest data from the China Flower Association shows that in 2024, the total volume of China's flower import and export trade totaled 782 million U.S. dollars.
This year, the overall flower retail market in China is expected to reach 250 billion yuan (about 35 billion U.S. dollars), with an annual growth rate of 7 percent, the association said. ■