First China-Europe Freight Train for Tea Delivery Services Launched in Henan

First China-Europe Freight Train for Tea Delivery Services Launched in Henan

河南绿茶首次搭载中欧班列（郑州）运往中亚

Loaded with green tea from Henan, a China-Europe freight train named "Henan Tea Group" departed from Zhengzhou on January 18, bound for Uzbekistan's Tashkent and scheduled to arrive in 12 days, to bring the fragrance of the tea to Central Asian countries.

1月18日，首班满载着河南绿茶的“河南省茶叶集团号”河南绿茶专列从郑州发出，12天后将到达乌兹别克斯坦塔什干车站，将河南茶香运往中亚各地。

First China-Europe freight train for tea delivery services launched in Henan. [Photo provided to dahe.cn]

As a significant transportation hub in China, Henan has a huge tea consumption market with a long history of tea culture, thus laying a solid foundation for its profound tea culture. Benefited by the network built up with the Belt and Road Initiative, China-Europe freight train (Zhengzhou) for tea delivery services creates an opportunity for Henan's high-quality agricultural by-products and local specialties to be internationally recognized and to participate in the arrangement of global industries.

河南省茶文化历史悠久，茶叶消费量大，加之是全国重要的交通枢纽，奠定了河南浓厚的茶文化基础。“河南省茶叶集团号”河南绿茶专列的开行标志着河南绿茶搭载中欧班列（郑州），借中欧班列（郑州）“一带一路”互联互通的渠道，为河南优质农副产品土特产产品走出河南、走向世界、深度参与世界产业分工创造契机。

The global spreading of the tea from Henan with the Belt and Road Initiative is not only under the policy guidance, but also reflects the market demand, meanwhile playing a significant role in disseminating Chinese tea culture. Henan's tea export contributes to market expansion, promotes the balance between production and marketing, accelerates economic circulation as well as helps to develop the upstream and downstream industrial chains and to increase tea farmers' income and enhance rural revitalization. In recent years, Xinyang has vigorously developed the tea industry for the welfare of the tea farmers, and given its full support to the successful launch of the train.

河南茶叶借助“一带一路”走向世界既是政策的指引又是市场的需求，同时也为中国茶文化传播起到重要的作用。河南茶叶出口不仅有利于产业市场的壮大，促进产销平衡，加快经济循环，也有利于带动上下游产业链，帮助茶农增收致富，助力乡村振兴。近年来信阳市大力发展茶产业为茶农谋福利，此次顺利发车也得到了信阳市政府的大力支持。

First China-Europe freight train for tea delivery services launched in Henan. [Photo provided to dahe.cn]

According to Wang Peng from Henan Tea Group Co., Ltd., the company plans to build its first overseas warehouse in Uzbekistan in 2021 to ensure the market share of Henan's tea export, with a predicted annual export of 20,000 tons and an output value of $60 million. The successful launch of China-Europe freight train (Zhengzhou) for tea delivery services has helped to realize the connection between industry and freight train, formed a virtuous circle in which freight train and industrial development boost each other, and further promoted the industrial diversification with "freight train + industry" and China-Europe freight train (Zhengzhou).

据河南省茶叶进出口集团负责人王鹏介绍，2021年公司计划在乌兹别克斯坦建立首座海外仓，海外仓建成之后，将有效保障河南茶叶的出口市场份额，预计年出口茶叶将达到2万吨，产值6000万美元。中欧班列（郑州）“河南省茶叶集团号”河南绿茶专列的开行，实现了河南省产业和班列的有效对接，形成了班列助推产业发展、产业促进班列开行的良好局面，实现了“班列+产业”、中欧班列（郑州）引领带动产业多元化能级的进一步提升。

Despite the global COVID-19 pandemic, China-Europe freight train (Zhengzhou) still ran smoothly and fruitfully in 2020, with the number of trips, cargo revenue and weight increasing by 13 percent, 26.5 percent and 31.4 percent year-on-year. Besides, its major indicators ranked the forefront in China and the number of trips the "first phalanx" place, therefore playing a positive role in the smooth operation of the strategic freight channel.

据大河网记者了解，在新冠肺炎疫情不利影响下，2020年中欧班列（郑州）逆势提升，开行班次同比增长13%，运载货值和货重分别提升26.5%和31.4%，主要运营指标全国领先，开行班次居全国“第一方阵”，为畅通国家战略安全通道发挥了积极作用。（中文来源/大河网 翻译/赵汉青 审校/张军平）