On October 23, the Shaoxing Yangtze River Delta Jiangnan International Agricultural Products Trading Center, located in Binhai New Area, commenced trial operations. This comprehensive first-tier agricultural wholesale market has been fully completed and put into use, providing support for ensuring stable supply and prices of agricultural products in Shaoxing and surrounding areas, and enriching the public's "vegetable basket."
On the first day of trial operations, the market was bustling with activity. Large trucks loaded with agricultural products such as potatoes, onions, and mushrooms arrived from places of origin including Shandong, Yunnan, and Inner Mongolia, unloading and stacking goods in an orderly manner. The trading area was crowded with people, and the sounds of inquiries and orders being placed filled the air. Loading and unloading workers said they started unloading at 3 a.m. that day and would unload approximately 20,000 catties of vegetables including winter melons, onions, and pumpkins. In the vegetable trading area, Zhang Yujia, general manager of Zhejiang Yuanyuan Agricultural Development Co., Ltd., who was the first merchant to enter the market in the early morning, was busy communicating with customers. This shipment came from Gansu and consisted of Gansu plateau summer vegetables, totaling 32 tons. "The location here is good, and transportation is convenient. Being in Shaoxing and the Yangtze River Delta region, logistics is easy, there are many people, and many varieties. We previously had markets in Hangzhou, Guangzhou, and Xiamen. This is a new market here, so we came. We've already received 10 orders this morning," Zhang Yujia said. He had visited the market five or six times for inspections before the market began recruiting tenants.
As goods from production areas entered the market, buyers also came after hearing the news. Zhang Weilin, who came from Quzhou, Zhejiang, was selecting vegetables. She had procurement needs for dozens of varieties. "I used to buy goods in Hangzhou, but now coming to Shaoxing is more convenient. This market is also new, and prices are definitely cheaper just after opening—at least 5% cheaper anyway," Zhang Weilin said.
It is understood that the center was led in construction by the Shaoxing Supply and Marketing Cooperative, and professional operations were entrusted to Guangzhou Jiangnan Agricultural Development Co., Ltd. It covers nearly 600 mu with a total building area of 320,000 square meters, centered on 500,000 cubic meters of cold chain logistics. It is a major industrial project in Zhejiang Province, a key provincial construction project, and a key project of the province's "Thousand Projects, Trillion Yuan" effective investment expansion initiative. The vegetable trading area is divided into five major zones, with over 500 stalls already fully rented, and each is equipped with a dedicated small cold storage unit so vegetables can be quickly preserved after entering the market. The aquatic products trading area opened at the same time, offering fresh direct supply and a rich variety of categories. The linkage between the two major areas further unblocks agricultural product circulation channels in the Yangtze River Delta. Smart cold storage is also in place, providing guarantees for the subsequent entry of multiple categories of fresh products.
Agricultural product quality and safety is the lifeline of the "vegetable basket." Entering the market's rapid testing room, inspectors were taking samples of vegetables that had just entered the market, preparing to conduct tests for pesticide residues and other items. "We have already sampled about 140 to 150 batches. The main entry inspections check indicators such as pesticide residues, veterinary drug residues, and illegal additives," said Yu Yong, general manager of Shaoxing Grain and Oil Quality Testing Station Co., Ltd.
The significance of this first-tier agricultural wholesale market goes beyond local supply assurance. As a subsidiary of the Shaoxing Supply and Marketing Cooperative, Pan Qifeng, general manager of Shaoxing Bada Agricultural Products Market Co., Ltd., the investor and builder of the trading center, introduced that after the project is fully operational, it will form a modern agricultural product circulation platform integrating functions such as trading, warehousing, logistics, processing, e-commerce, and exhibitions. It is expected to have an annual trading volume of approximately 1.5 million tons and an annual trading value of over 30 billion yuan. "Goods from our production areas first enter cold chain storage. Internally, relying on the supply and marketing cooperative's 40 farmers' markets and community outlets, we achieve 30-minute delivery within the urban area and two-hour delivery to surrounding areas; externally, we serve as a distribution and transshipment hub for the Yangtze River Delta. Local supply assurance and regional distribution operate simultaneously on two lines to ensure supply and stabilize prices," Pan Qifeng said.
Comments