(Yicai) Nov. 9 -- With live folk music, California wines, and freshly seared pork chops, the US Food and Agriculture Pavilion at the China International Import Expo offers visitors a taste of an American country fair, while the CIIE offers US farmers and food businesses a way to reach buyers in the Chinese market.

This year's US Food and Agriculture Pavilion at the annual CIIE, which ends tomorrow, takes its inspiration from a traditional American country fair, Eric Zheng, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, told Yicai. “Walking through the pavilion is like visiting a fair back in the United States,” he said. “A wide variety of agricultural products are on display, and each exhibitor is different.”

The pavilion has reached a record size this time, while the value of deals signed on the opening day was equally impressive, Zheng said, adding that “US food and agricultural producers see tangible opportunities in the Chinese market.”

On Nov. 5, US exhibitors signed six deals with Chinese partners worth more than USD650 million, including three agreements penned by Illinois-based Hang Tung Resources and one each by New York-based CLB Management and Idaho-based animal nutrition firm Dynamite.

The CIIE is the world’s only national-level import-themed exhibition and embodies China’s commitment to opening-up, Zheng stressed. “By focusing on agriculture and partnering with the US Department of Agriculture to support small and medium-sized US enterprises, we are also supporting American farmers and boosting China-US trade,” he said.

The commercial opportunities in China are particularly clear for products that have little demand in the US but are popular with Chinese consumers. Chicken feet, for instance, are rarely eaten in the US, but are widely enjoyed in China and prepared in a variety of dishes, creating a lucrative market for a product that would otherwise have limited commercial value at home, Jared Turner, general manager of US trade services provider Import Solutions, told Yicai.

“The large-sized chicken feet we export to China are in high demand.” Turner said.

Hsu's Ginseng is using the CIIE to showcase a capsule developed specifically for Chinese consumers to make American ginseng more convenient to take in all occasions. Wisconsin, where the company is based, accounts for more than 95 percent of US ginseng output, while China is that state's largest export market for the product.

Opposite the US Food and Agriculture Pavilion sits a booth hosted by the US Soybean Export Council. Most of its representatives work for US soybean associations, many of whom are farmers attending the CIIE for the first time, with some making their maiden visits to China.

Brent Gatton, chairman of the United Soybean Board and a soybean farmer, said he was “amazed” by the scale of the CIIE, describing the expo as a rare chance to connect with global buyers, promote US soybeans, and support US soybean farmers.

No matter how trade barriers and circumstances shift, the US Soybean Export Council remains firmly committed to the Chinese market and will continue to stand by it, nurturing the ties between local partners and US farmers, Executive Director for East Asia Carlos Salinas said to Yicai.

Soaring global inflation has pushed up agricultural production costs, yet procurement from China “sends a positive signal for the future of global agriculture,” noted Christopher Eck, director of the Indiana Soybean Alliance.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev