KUNMING — At a flower company's cold storage facility in Kunming, Southwest China's Yunnan province, workers were busy conducting post-harvest processing on freshly delivered roses. The flowers were later loaded onto temperature-controlled refrigerated trucks and began a seven-day overland journey, eventually reaching florists in Kazakhstan.

Seven out of every 10 fresh-cut flowers sold in China come from Yunnan, according to industry figures, making the province one of the world's major producers of fresh-cut flowers. Kunming Customs data show that Yunnan's fresh-cut flower exports reached 1.22 billion yuan ($176.86 million) in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 60.5 percent, covering 64 global markets.

Dianwang Flowers, a company behind this shipment, is definitely riding the wave of that broader trend. They've grown their business to cover 20 markets across Southeast Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East.

What unfolds here is more than a floral journey. It offers a glimpse into how China's "beautiful economy" is deeply integrating into the global industrial chain.

Across Yunnan, quality flowers from growing regions — such as Jinning, Lijiang and Chuxiong — are being exported to destinations worldwide through a sophisticated supply chain network and diverse logistics channels. Shipments bound for Myanmar and the Philippines arrive within 48 hours by air, while those headed for Vietnam reach Lao Cai in only six hours from Kunming's Dounan Flower Market.

Currently, Dianwang Flowers has achieved direct production and sales in the Myanmar market through its 200 mu (13.33 hectares) experimental farm located in the country. This year, the company's full-chain industrial project, integrating research and development, cultivation and sales, in collaboration with Myanmar authorities, is scheduled to be completed. The company has also actively partnered with Cambodian counterparts, securing a 65 percent market share locally and introducing advanced planting techniques and seedlings through training programs.

Fu Zhaotian, head of the company, explained that the Myanmar market favors lilies, chrysanthemums and carnations, while large-headed roses, such as Highland Red and Floyd, are highly popular in Central Asia and the Russian market. On the R&D front, Yunnan flowers are now being precisely tailored to different markets, which has led to a diversified supply system oriented by market demand.

According to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, by the end of 2025, the market size of China's flower industry had reached 100 billion yuan, with a stable cultivation area of nearly 1.39 million hectares and over 5.34 million people directly employed in the sector.

The administration said China has developed six other major competitive flower production clusters, apart from Yunnan, tailored to its natural endowments, such as Guangdong, Shandong and Gansu provinces.

Online demand is emerging as a new growth driver for the flower market. According to a 2025 report released by the China Flower Association, the scale of flower e-commerce consumption reached approximately 120 billion yuan in 2024, accounting for 54.5 percent of the total retail market. It has been the main engine of growth for three consecutive years.

"We enable flower farmers to connect directly with florists right from the fields via their mobile phones, allowing them to sell before harvest," said Zhang Shaomin, co-founder of a vertical e-commerce platform specializing in flowers. "This has reduced the average transaction time by 24 hours, lowered the loss rate by 30 percent and increased flower farmers' income by 20 percent."

In 2022, China issued a guideline to promote the high-quality development of the flower industry. It set a target for the industry to achieve an annual sales revenue exceeding 700 billion yuan by 2035, alongside a steady expansion of flower exports.

Customs data show that in 2024, China's flower exports reached $516 million, a year-on-year increase of 17.78 percent.

Xinhua - China Daily