Sustainability and affordability are among the most sought-after product qualities at the final phase of the Canton Fair, which has bought thousands of global buyers to south China's Guangdong Province.
The China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, was first established in 1957. Since then, it has seen its exhibits evolve from agricultural products like tea and silk, to high-tech equipment and green goods.
At Phase 3 of the fair, buyers have come seeking textiles, home decor and kitchen supplies, among other product categories. Many exhibits are drawing interest with sustainable products, such as biodegradable cutlery and utensils made by Zhejiang Zhongxin Environmental Protection Technology Group.
"Our bagasse products are made from sugarcane waste. That makes it a matter of recycling and reusing waste. In terms of environmental protection, it's better than wood pulp," said Zhu Miaofei, business development manager of Zhejiang Zhongxin Environmental Protection Technology Group.
The company now offers buyers more than 1,000 kinds of green products and can manufacture custom products according to buyers' specific needs, which has built client loyalty.
"We have a new tax that is (levied on) most of paper with plastic. You don't want this. What we want, the Chinese company makes it. We see China is one step (ahead of) European markets," said Sahyin Karagoz, a Belgian buyer.
Affordability is another reason why international buyers visit the Canton Fair. For 17 years, seller Li Xia has built her business around one of Africa’s most persistent challenges -- access to electricity for low-income families. She started with basic solar-powered lights that cost just five U.S. dollars each and could last for five years. To date, her companies have supplied more than 8,000,000 solar lamps, benefiting people in 66 countries.
African buyers said Li's solar products are budget-friendly.
"Of course, they helped us a lot. Products from China have changed the pricing tremendously," said Kaseke Stewart, a Zimbabwean buyer.
Li said she aims to offer African people with high-quality Chinese products that can promote local development.
"We still hope that people in Africa and local distributors there can see China’s good materials, good designs, and good solutions, which can help Africa achieve leapfrog development," said Li.
International buyers said the Canton Fair has served as a professional, creative and reliable platform.
"I would say excellent, and so the Canton Fair does a very professional job," said John Pleva, a U.S. buyer.
"This means, for us, a source of new ideas, new products, new suppliers," said Richard Sikora, an Austrian buyer.
"I think the Canton Fair is a beautiful, very great fair in the world," said Russian buyer Stepanova.
The Canton Fair is held twice a year in Guangzhou. It is the longest-running of several comprehensive international trade events in China, and has been hailed as the barometer of China's foreign trade.
Themed on "Better Life," the third phase of the 140th Canton Fair kicked off on Saturday and runs through Wednesday.
Canton Fair attracts global buyers with sustainability, affordability
