Celebrations marking the International Tea Day are held at Luozhou Ancient Town, Fuzhou, on May 23. [Photo/FZ Evening News]

Fuzhou jasmine tea has been included in China's 2026 list of National Advantageous and Characteristic Industrial Clusters, becoming the only tea-related cluster among the country's 40 approved national-level industrial clusters.

The recognition also marks a milestone for Fujian province, as the Fuzhou jasmine tea cluster is the province's first national-level advantageous industrial cluster independently established by a single prefecture-level city.

Industrial clusters integrate planting, processing, research, marketing, cultural tourism and other sectors into a coordinated supply chain, improving efficiency and competitiveness through closer collaboration. The initiative is expected to further accelerate the transformation of Fuzhou's jasmine tea industry from fragmented development toward coordinated and integrated growth.

By the end of 2025, Fuzhou's tea plantations had covered 188,100 mu (about 12,540 hectares) in area, with an annual raw tea output of 54,100 metric tons. Jasmine flower cultivation reached 18,000 mu in area, while annual jasmine tea production totaled 23,000 metric tons. The industry's full industrial chain output value reached 11.8 billion yuan ($1.77 billion), with a regional brand value worth 4.946 billion yuan.

Renowned for its distinctive single-petal jasmine flowers grown in the sandy soils along the Minjiang River, Fuzhou jasmine tea is celebrated for its traditional scenting technique and naturally sweet flavor. The new cluster platform aims to further integrate and promote these unique qualities under a unified industrial framework.

According to the development plan, the cluster will advance 68 projects across six major initiatives, with a total planned investment of nearly one billion yuan. These initiatives include standardized cultivation, intelligent processing, product innovation, cold-chain logistics, brand development, and the integrated development of tea culture, tea industry, and tea technology.

The cluster will also support the development of high-value-added products such as tea powder, concentrated tea extracts, and tea-scented sachets.

In addition, it will promote the integration of tea culture and tourism through themed travel routes and cultural events, which are expected to help further enhance the quality, branding, and global influence of Fuzhou jasmine tea, while deepening integration across primary, secondary, and tertiary industries.