Yunnan flowers making a splash in Kazakhstan

Residents of Kazakstan recently encountered the vibrant colors and fragrant scents of fresh cut flowers from Yunnan province, signifying a solid step forward for Yunnan's flower industry in its efforts to expand into international markets.

From April 8 to 10, the Flora Expo Astana 2025 was held in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan. More than 200 companies from nearly 20 countries and regions across the world participated, including several from China that made their debut.

At a Chinese company's booth near the entrance of the exhibition hall, a flower-decorated dragon attracted lots of visitors, who stopped to take photos.

A young woman of Kazakh ethnicity dressed in traditional Chinese attire welcomed guests with a smile while showcasing fresh flowers from Yunnan.

The company also brought its online shopping platform to the event. Visitors to the booth scanned a QR code to view flower varieties and prices, and placed orders directly.

However, what impressed the company the most was the convenient and efficient logistics system.

"Thanks to favorable policies, our refrigerated trucks can travel directly from Yunnan to major cities in Kazakhstan," said the booth manager. "The trucks exit through the Horgos Port in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, which is about 4,200 kilometers from Kunming, with no need for transshipment along the trip. The port is about 1,600 km from Astana, greatly ensuring the quality of the flowers."

In recent years, China Kunming Dianwang Flowers Co, a company specializing in fresh flower research, cultivation, processing and sales, has established a full-chain operation model through technological innovation and management optimization, becoming a model for other companies in the province interested in going global.

"Yunnan's flower industry boasts a large scale and production capacity, with prominent advantages in industry development," said Fu Chao, chairman of the company. "However, it also faces challenges such as small export volumes and insufficient genetic resources."

In recent years, the company has engaged in international flower business, conducting inspections in flower markets in over 30 countries and regions, gaining in-depth insights into industry dynamics, promoting a series of international technological cooperation projects, and facilitating the extension and upgrading of the flower industry chain.

In May 2024, Fu visited and engaged in talks with the top five flowers companies in Kazakhstan.

"One company contacted us and conducted a four-day background check on our company," said Fu. "After a month of product quality testing, they finally signed an exclusive agency agreement worth about $2 million per year."

Currently, the company transports around 70 metric tons of fresh flowers monthly via refrigerated trucks, taking approximately five to seven days to reach Kazakhstan through Xinjiang.

They mainly export roses, delphiniums, hydrangeas and gypsophilas, with multiheaded and single-headed roses being most popular locally.

"We have planned to pay more attention to the Central Asian market in the future," Fu said. "I believe Chinese floral products will definitely establish a brand presence as long as the flowers and services are high quality."

Yunnan is one of the areas most suitable for flower plantation.

Leveraging its unique natural conditions, Yunnan has vigorously developed its flower industry, becoming an important production and export base for flowers in China.

Last year, the province's flower planting area reached 130,000 hectares, including 23,333 hectares dedicated to fresh cut flowers, making it the world's largest producer.

Data from Kunming Customs shows that in 2024, the export value of fresh cut flowers from the province reached 760 million yuan ($105.8 million), a year-on-year increase of 34.2 percent, ranking first in the country for six consecutive years.

In the first two months of this year, the export value of fresh cut flowers from Yunnan reached 190 million yuan, up 52.3 percent year-on-year.

To support the export of Yunnan flowers, Kunming Customs has been optimizing the business environment at ports and introducing a series of measures to facilitate customs clearance for enterprises.

Contact the writers at zhouhuiying@chinadaily.com.cn