Int'l wine conference, expo open in China's Ningxia

YINCHUAN, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region opened a wine-themed international conference and an expo on Friday, as the leading wine-producing region in China eyes further development.

The two-day International Conference on Grape and Wine Industries, as well as the third China (Ningxia) International Wine Culture and Tourism Expo, offer a unique platform for exploring new growth models for the wine-making industry and sharing new opportunities for international cooperation.

Themed "Nature, Innovation, Culture and Ecology," the event brings together experts and enterprises in the wine-making industry at home and abroad, and representatives from over 30 countries and four international organizations.

The event features forums on climate, technology, trade and investment, as well as wine culture and tourism.

Ningxia boasts a unique terroir for making top-class wine, with its prolonged sunshine and a cool, dry climate aiding the cultivation of grapes.

After more than 40 years of development, Ningxia has emerged as China's largest wine-producing region. It now has 228 wineries and grape-growing enterprises, which produced 138 million bottles of wine in 2022.