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SHANGHAI, May 28, 2021/Xinhua=KYODO JBN/--

After more than 1,000 days of preparation, the 10th China Flower Expo opened on

Shanghai's Chongming Island on May 21, according to the 10th China Flower Expo

News Center.

At the expo's opening, Li Zheng, Party Secretary of the Chongming District

Committee, said the expo reflects the significant progress that Chongming has

made to improve its green development over the past two decades.

"Since Shanghai positioned Chongming as an ecological island in 2001, the

people of Chongming have been dedicated to green development over the past 20

years," Li says.

Instead of attracting factories that offer quick solutions for profit,

Chongming focused on restoring its natural environment and developing its

eco-friendly agricultural, leisure and tourism industries with the aim of

becoming a world-class ecological island by 2035.

These efforts have paid off. The island now has a forest coverage of 30

percent, and residents enjoy good air quality about 90 percent of the year.

Moreover, clean energy constitutes 56 percent of electricity consumption on the

island.

Known as the premier gardening-themed event in China, the expo is held in

central Chongming and comprises 180 outdoor gardens, 64 indoor exhibition zones

and two service zones.

The giant butterfly-shaped Century Pavilion located in the northern part of the

expo is designed to look as if it were flying toward Fuxing Pavilion, the

permanent venue of the expo that sits in a peony shaped flower field. The

Chinese word fuxing means rejuvenation.

This design reflects the "Blossom with the Chinese Dream" theme as this year

marks the centenary of the Communist Party of China.

Dongping National Forest Park makes up the southern part of the expo and is

where visitors will find innovative flower designs created by 30 families in

the Yangtze River Delta. This is the first time that works by the public are

displayed at the expo.

At its first weekend, about 20,000 people visited the expo each day, where they

admired more than 20,000 exhibits, including 1,000 types of new flowers.

Shi Mingfang, Chairman of Bright Dairy and Food, says the group built its

largest flower factory in Shanghai, a 76,000-square-meter smart greenhouse to

store flowers for the expo.

Song Limin, the person in charge of the Henan provincial exhibition at Fuxing

Pavilion, says they have brought in 500 bonsai and floral arrangements to

compete for the gold medal at the expo's flower contest.

"We started to prepare the seeds last year and control the temperature to make

the flowers blossom during the expo," she says.

The Yunnan provincial exhibition has set up a big screen connected to the

Kunming International Flora Auction Trading Center, and people can see live

auction deals made every few seconds.

The 8th China Flower Trade Fair is also held alongside the expo, with three

sessions taking place from May 21-29, June 5-13 and June 19-27. About 400

horticulture companies from around the country are selling various flowers,

seeds, plants, seedlings and gardening tools at the fair.

Fei Xuemei, general manager of Yunnan Holy Flora, says that sales of flowers

are set to increase in China due to rising income levels of Chinese people.

"Flowers are high value-added agricultural products, and the flower industry

contributes to the country's revitalization of the countryside," she says.

Jiang Zehui, President of the China Flower Association, says the planting area

of flowers in the country to date stands at 1.5 million hectares and generates

annual sales of over 250 billion yuan ($39.2 billion) and a net export volume

of $622 million, making China one of the biggest flower producers and traders

in the world.

Chongming has been promoting its flower retail industry since it won the right

to host the flower expo three years ago.

By the end of last year, Chongming welcomed eight large flower companies that

brought in combined investments of about 2.5 billion yuan. Planting area of

commercial flowers on Chongming also reached 28,000 mu (1,865 hectares).

Li Cheng, president of the China Horticultural Society, says that though

Shanghai cannot compete with Yunnan in terms of overall flower production, its

location makes it an ideal source of plants and flowers as one of the richest

regions in the country.

"Sitting in the Yangtze River Delta, Chongming's plants can be quickly

transported and sold not only in Shanghai, but also Zhejiang and Jiangsu

provinces where the annual per capita income is ranked among the top five in

the Chinese mainland," Li says. "Holding the flower expo will certainly boost

Chongming's brand as a floral island."

Launched in Beijing in 1987, the expo has been promoting the development of the

flower retail industry in China. The expo venue is rotated among Chinese cities

every four years.

"The expo has been a platform for flower exchanges and cooperation, driving the

development of the entire industrial chain, including flower research and

development, processing and logistics," says Liu Dongsheng, Deputy Director of

the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.

The spillover effect of the flower expo has also spurred an upgrade of

Chongming's tourism sector. Hundreds of guesthouses and farm stays have opened

over the past three years in anticipation of the massive influx of expo

visitors.

"The expo lets more people know Chongming, and it boosts the already hot

minsubusiness on the island," says Liu Qing, owner of guesthouse Zhigu 1984 and

President of the Chongming Minsu Association. Minsu refers to Chinese styled

bed-and-breakfast accommodations.

"For many popular minsu, guests currently need to book a month in advance," he

says.

Li Zheng, the Party secretary of Chongming, says the district will seize the

opportunity to promote its ecotourism and green agriculture during the 11th

China Ecological Civilization Summit held on the second day of the expo.

"We will continue the momentum of building Chongming into a beautiful

countryside where people can gaze at the night stars, hear the birds sing and

smell the flowers," Li says.

Source: The 10th China Flower Expo News Center

Image Attachments Links:

   Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=392422

   Caption: The Century Pavilion of the 10th China Flower Expo is shaped like a giant

butterfly.

   Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=392427

   Caption: Shanghai's Chongming Island hosts the flower expo