Chinese customs authorities crushed tens of thousands of pirated, global brandname products this week in Ningbo, a major port city in East China's Zhejiang Province.

The destroyed products, including fake Rolex watches, Nike and Adidas sportswear and Toyota and Honda automotive parts, were later sent to a local power plant as garbage, according to the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

The move was part of efforts by customs authorities to protect intellectual property rights (IPR), GAC's official said.

To date, GAC has recorded about 1,800 IPR-related cases involving 300 million yuan (US$36.1 million) worth of pirated products, official sources said.

Witnessing the destruction operation, representatives from Ningbo's joint-ventures expressed appreciation for the efforts made by Chinese customs authorities.

Over the past two years, Ningbo Customs has seized more than 11 million yuan (US$1.3 million) worth of pirated international brandname products in 34 cases.