Since late 2025, local counties have been promoting tea and navel oranges through tourism events and e-commerce campaigns, positioning them as income drivers for rural regions.
China is also leveraging global demand for tea, which is increasingly linked to health and wellness positioning to support export growth and rural incomes.
Leveraging global demand for Chinese products
Tea has become one of the world’s three major beverages, with over 2 billion people worldwide having the habit of drinking tea, according to Li Chunsheng, president of the China Association of Supply and Marketing Cooperative Economics.
Li spoke of transforming and upgrading the tea industry through integrated tourism, industrial development, and cultural innovation at the December 2025 Global Green Tea Congress held in Wuyuan County, Jiangxi Province.
As Wuyuan County currently has nearly 210,000 mu (about 14,000 hectares) of tea plantations with an industry output value exceeding CNY6bn (about US$860m), Li believes the tea sector will be vital to boosting local prosperity and economic growth.
“China’s tea output now exceeds 37 million tonnes, with the total value surpassing 330 billion yuan, supporting regional economic development and increasing farmers’ incomes,” said Li.
Similarly in Guangxi, navel oranges are getting an economic boost through initiatives that integrate agriculture with tourism.
Activities like the China-ASEAN Expo, local marathons and navel orange-picking festivals help convert tourist footfall into sales.
Tourists can immerse in fruit picking experiences during the orange harvest season in winter.
Additionally, to improve the management of its local navel orange industry, Guangxi has introduced a series of development schemes and cultivated more than 30 agricultural enterprises, supporting navel orange sales in both domestic and overseas markets, including Canada and the UAE.
These initiatives also align with China’s broader Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which increasingly extends beyond physical infrastructure to include agricultural trade, digital commerce and cultural exchange.
Agricultural products – such as tea and oranges – are being promoted not just as exports, but also as a means of cultural exchange alongside the BRI framework.
E-commerce an essential tool to engage modern consumers
There are also initiatives that integrate e-commerce with local events.
The Guangxi county encourages live streaming sales via JD.com, Douyin and other digital consumption platforms to promote sales, which can go beyond 10,000kg of oranges daily, reported Xinhua Silk Road – China’s media platform for news of the country’s Belt and Road Initiative.
There are tailored logistics routes enabling next-day delivery within Guangxi and Guangdong provinces, and delivery within three days to most other regions.
E-commerce outlets are therefore a common sight in 156 villages across the county, where the daily delivery volume of navel oranges since last autumn averaged more than 30,000 packages.
China’s timely promotion of Guangxi navel oranges and Jiangxi green tea coincides with the upcoming Chinese New Year in February, as Chinese communities around the world increase spending amid the festive cheer.
Navel oranges and tea feature prominently during Chinese New year, which will fall on February 17 this year.
The promotion of Guangxi navel oranges and Jiangxi green tea also coincides with rising seasonal demand ahead of the Lunar New Year in February, when consumer spending typically increases.
Navel oranges are commonly associated with prosperity and good fortune, while tea is frequently gifted during the festive period, reinforcing their commercial relevance during peak sales seasons.
