China's marketing service system for farm produce further improved

China's marketing service system for agricultural products has been further improved so far this year, as a result of in-depth implementation of the program for cultivating high-quality agricultural brands.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, in collaboration with 20 of the 31 provincial-level regions on the Chinese mainland, has spearheaded the development of 33 national-level farm produce markets and approved the designation of 663 farm produce wholesale markets so far in 2024. Besides, a first batch of 55 key counties (or county-level cities) have been designated to build cold-chain logistics hubs in them, along with the establishment of 500 cold-chain collection and distribution centers.

These efforts are intended to create essential cold-chain circulation hubs linking urban and rural areas while building integrated service platforms that seamlessly connect production with marketing.

In Yongxing County, central China's Hunan Province, farmers were busy harvesting and packing fresh oranges from a 200-mu (approximately 13.33 hectares) orchard for delivery to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in south China, one of China's most economically vibrant regions.

To make sure that the oranges reach consumers faster, the local postal service has established "mobile courier points" in the fields during the harvest season. These facilities bring shipping services directly to the orchards, streamlining processes and addressing challenges such as excessive transit links, high fruit damage rates, and delivery delays.

"A mobile courier point like this one handles over 10,000 parcels daily, with the peak volume reaching around 30,000. We also allocate delivery vehicles based on the orchard size. Currently, over 30 delivery vehicles are dispatched to the orchards daily," said Zhou Xin, a staff member at the Yongxing branch of China Post.

Beyond these mobile facilities, the region has established over 30 fixed service stations so far this year, extending courier services to more villages. These advancements enable agricultural products to be packaged and shipped directly from the fields.

Across China's rural areas, over 100 million parcels now move in and out daily, with express delivery services covering 90 percent of villages.

Looking ahead, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs plans to further enhance logistics infrastructure, promote the cultivation and protection of competitive agricultural brands, and accelerate transition from the adoption of traditional sales methods to the application of modern distribution systems.

China's marketing service system for farm produce further improved

A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday slammed Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te over his latest remarks on cross-Strait relations, accusing him of promoting secessionism and escalating tensions across the Taiwan Strait.

Chen Binhua, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said in a press release that Lai's speech marking his second anniversary in office was "filled with lies and deception, hostility and confrontation."

Chen accused Lai of stubbornly adhering to a secessionist stance in pursuit of "Taiwan independence," while exaggerating the so-called threats from the mainland and intensifying confrontation across the Strait.

Lai played an old trick of advocating the secessionist agenda on one hand and, on the other, calling insincerely for dialogue and exchanges with the mainland, attempting to mislead people in Taiwan and deceive the international community, he said.

Chen said that these common tricks have been seen through by more and more Taiwanese people. Their deceptive and provocative actions will be met with firm opposition from compatriots on both sides and the international community, and are doomed to fail.

Reaffirming the mainland's position on the Taiwan question, Chen said Taiwan has never been a country, is not one now, and will never become one in the future.

He described the Taiwan question as a historical issue left over from a Chinese civil war in the 1940s.

No election result in Taiwan could alter the fact that Taiwan is part of China or sever the historical and legal bonds linking the two sides of the Strait, according to Chen.

The mainland would never allow any person or force to pursue secessionist activities under any pretext, he added.

Calling secessionists "the chief culprit" who undermines cross-Strait peace, Chen said the mainland would continue to uphold the one-China principle and the 1992 Consensus, unite broadly with Taiwan compatriots, combat secessionist activities, and safeguard peace and stability across the Strait.

Central government spokesperson refutes Lai Ching-te's latest remarks, warns against secessionist moves