Consumers in the eastern Chinese province of Anhui could soon have access to fresher imported fruits at more competitive prices thanks to a new port of entry in the state’s capital Hefei.
The Anhui provincial government is close to completing construction of the new port facility, which has been approved by China’s quarantine authorities to handle imported fruit.
Situated in the Economic and Technical Development Zone (ETDZ) in Hefei, the facility covers a total area of close to 7,000m2 and it comprises refrigerated storage capacity of 300 tonnes as well as a laboratory and special area for inspecting imports, according to local news site Anhui News. The operation is the province's first-ever dedicated port for handling agricultural products.
Sang Linbing, an official with the Administrative Committee of the ETDZ, told Anhui News that fruit imports to Hefei have always been subject to customs inspection and quarantine clearance in Shanghai or Guangzhou.
But local demand for imported fruits is reported to be increasing sharply as income levels increase among the province’s population. Zhougudui, the major wholesale market in Hefei, has seen an average year-on-year increase of 15 per cent in sales volumes of imported fruit, according to statistics quoted by Sang.
Construction of the port facility – originally budgeted to cost around RMB20m (US$3.2m) – is due to be completed next month.
