Known as the "hometown of garlic", Jinxiang county of Jining, Shandong province, occupies a massive area of more than 2 million mu (about 1,333.33 square kilometers) dedicated to planting garlic.

With more than 900 garlic enterprises in Jinxiang holding trading rights with over 170 countries and regions, the county claims around 70 percent of garlic products exported from China.

To accomplish such a feat, concerted efforts have been made on multiple fronts. First, the county has dramatically emphasized technological innovation, independently developing over 40 functional garlic food and medicinal products. This has facilitated an entire industrial production chain from food to healthcare and pharmaceutical products, thereby contributing to technological innovation in the garlic industry.

Furthermore, Jinxiang county has actively pursued the diversification of its marketing avenues by establishing physical and virtual platforms for conducting transactions. With an impressive number of more than 1,800 garlic storage and processing establishments, an astounding 3,500 temperature-controlled storage facilities, and a staggering count of over 4,000 cross-border e-commerce enterprises, Jinxiang has been able to amass an extensive range of marketing and transaction capabilities. This has resulted in a remarkable cumulative transaction value surpassing an awe-inspiring 68 billion yuan ($9.57 billion).

In recent years, the garlic industry has been made the county's pillar industry, and it continues to enjoy a considerable reputation in the global garlic market. It is a globally recognized center for garlic cultivation, storage, processing, trade, information dissemination, and pricing.

Garlic produced in Jinxiang county of Jining [Photo/Jining News]