On August 16th, during a press conference held in Changji, Chairman Liu Youqian of the China Canning Industry Association announced that the inaugural Tomato Festival organized by the association will take place from August 24th to 26th at the Xinjiang Agricultural Expo Park in the Changji National Agricultural High-Tech Industry Demonstration Zone.

The theme of the inaugural Tomato Festival is "Quality Tomatoes, Tasting Xinjiang." The event aims to focus on strengthening industry production standards, enhancing the quality and branding of tomato products, promoting technological innovation, fostering synergies within the industry chain, driving product consumption upgrades, and expanding market channels. Through these efforts, the festival seeks to collectively explore the development trends and sustainable models of the tomato industry, consolidate industry consensus, and accelerate the progression of the tomato industry towards high-quality development.

Liu Youqian introduced that China is the world's largest producer of fresh tomatoes and one of the three major processing tomato producing areas globally. In recent years, China's tomato industry has grown rapidly, with tomato production holding a substantial global share. Tomato products, as a significant export advantage, rank among the top vegetable products in terms of exports. Tomato paste exports annually dominate the global trade volume. Xinjiang is a key region for tomato processing in China. Currently, approximately 70% of China's tomato paste exports come from Xinjiang, accounting for about a quarter of the world's trade volume. Xinjiang has become the third-largest tomato product producer globally and is the largest tomato production and processing base in Asia. Additionally, with the continuous improvement of people's living standards and the upgrading of consumption demands, the domestic market for deep-processed tomato products is showing sustained growth, indicating a promising industry outlook.

Wei Zhonghua, a Level-Three Researcher from the Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, mentioned that Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture boasts advantageous natural conditions for tomato production, distinct industrial advantages, and leading product quality. In 2022, the area of tomato planting and processing in Changji was 250,000 mu (about 16,667 hectares), accounting for approximately 40% of the total tomato planting area in Xinjiang. Changji has 25 tomato product processing enterprises, contributing to 35% of Xinjiang's processing capacity, making it one of the significant tomato production and processing bases in Xinjiang. He expressed that they would actively cooperate with the China Canning Industry Association to host the first Tomato Festival and take this opportunity to establish a national-level tomato industry cluster in Changji, jointly building "China Tomato Capital, Changji," and achieving a higher level of tomato industry development.

Li Qianghua, a member of the Party Committee and Deputy Director of the Administrative Committee of the Changji National Agricultural High-Tech Industry Demonstration Zone, as one of the hosting units of the inaugural Tomato Festival, stated that the Changji Agricultural High-Tech Zone would spare no effort in preparations. The first Tomato Festival will include seven stages: the opening ceremony, exhibition experience, seminars and exchanges on the high-quality development of China's tomato industry, cultural performances, and more. During the event, the organizing committee will also hold a series of activities, including a tomato food festival.

Source： Xinjiang Daily