CIIE help boost coffee industry in China

The spillover effects of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) have continued to spur the development of coffee industry in China, especially in the hosting city of Shanghai.

Home to a total of 7,494 coffee shops, Shanghai can claim to be the city with the most coffee shops in the world.

High-quality coffee products from all over the world are continuing to enter the Chinese market.

Local resident surnamed Wang is a frequent visitor to a coffee shop where he enjoys his happy moment during a day on a cup of Jamaica blue mountain coffee.

"I seldom had this kind of pure coffee beans in the past. But now I come here once or twice a week," said Wang.

Xu Wenyong took Jamaica blue mountain coffee beans to the CIIE three years ago, and now he is seeing his efforts paying off as time passes by.

"Through the CIIE, Jamaica's confidence in the Chinese market has been further strengthened. Prior to the CIIE, the annual import volume was about one to two tons, but now it is two to four tons," said Xu, general manager of the Shanghai Wallenford International Trading Company.

This year, the municipality launched Shanghai Hongqiao International Coffee Harbor which homes more than 30 coffee industry chain enterprises to carry out exhibition, trading and experience activities.

According to the plan, the Shanghai Hongqiao International Coffee Harbor will build the largest domestic coffee culture museum, the most authoritative international training and certification center, the world's top base for coffee specialists, and the most influential international authorized domestic coffee events among others.

"[The CIIE] will bring greater spillover effect to Shanghai's economic upgrading, the improvement of people's living standards and the improvement of the city's soft power," said Zhang Guohua, deputy director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce.