STORY: How peonies boost local industry in China's Heze
DATELINE: June 20, 2023
LENGTH: 0:02:58
LOCATION: HEZE, China
CATEGORY: ECONOMY/CULTURE

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the peony industry in Heze City
2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): ZHENG YING, Tourist
3. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): FU CAIQIAO, Tourist
4. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LI XIAOQI, Deputy Secretary-General of Peony Branch of China Flower Association
5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LI MINGHONG, President of Heze Yao and Shun Peony Biotechnology Co., Ltd
6. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): WANG JIANLIN, Party chief of Wangqiao Village in Heze City
7. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): ZHU GUOPING, Resident of Huangtun Village in Heze City
8. SOUNDBITE (Chinese): ZHANG JUNYU, Board member of Longchi Peony Industrial Co., Ltd.

STORYLINE:

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): ZHENG YING, Tourist
"It's not only a feast for the eyes, you can also smell the different fragrances of various kinds of peonies."

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): FU CAIQIAO, Tourist
"It's just so beautiful. I dressed up specially to appreciate the peonies here with my friends."
 
Peony, China's national flower, symbolizes wealth and prosperity. Peony cultivation has a history of thousands of years in the country.

Heze, a city in Shandong Province, is dubbed the "Peony Capital of China."

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LI XIAOQI, Deputy Secretary-General of Peony Branch of China Flower Association
"Heze has a long history of planting peonies. Heze's peony planting area is the largest in China. The city also boasts the largest number of peony varieties, as well as the greatest number of people engaged in related industries."

In November 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited a peony industrial park in Heze during an inspection tour of Shandong. Back then, Heze was still a relatively less developed city.
 
Xi said that the key to pursuing development in a certain area is to find the right direction and make use of its unique features.

He said that less developed areas need to build on their resource advantages and industrial foundation, and tap into the potentials of their specialties, so as to achieve differentiated competitiveness and development.

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): LI MINGHONG, President of Heze Yao and Shun Peony Biotechnology Co., Ltd
"President Xi's visit boosted our confidence and motivation. It also made us more assured about the direction of the peony industry's development. We have increased our R&D efforts and would launch new products every year."

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): WANG JIANLIN, Party chief of Wangqiao Village in Heze City
In recent years, the peony industry has witnessed explosive growth. In the past, our village only had several hundred mu of peony plantations, but since 2013, the plantations have been expanded rapidly to more than 20,000 mu. The farmers' per capita income has increased from several thousand yuan to tens of thousands of yuan.

Since 2013, Heze has been working to build a peony industrial chain and promote the upgrading of the industries.

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): ZHU GUOPING, Resident of Huangtun Village in Heze City
Here the peonies could be used for making herbal medicines and peony seeds oil, as well as fresh-cut flowers.

SOUNDBITE (Chinese): ZHANG JUNYU, Board member of Longchi Peony Industrial Co., Ltd.
"We have developed peony skincare products, food, and cultural and creative products related to peonies. The peony industry is booming in Heze. We have seen the opportunities. In the future, we will continue to expand the peony planting area, increase R&D and develop more products to meet the needs of our customers."
 
From a flower to an industrial chain, peonies have not only adorned the city of Heze, but also empowered its people, and enriched citizens' lives.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Heze, China.
(XHTV)