The Cultural and Industrial Essence of Zhejiang – China's Top Tea Export Region
Zhejiang, the province with the largest tea export volume in China, has forged an unbreakable bond between its tea export trade and profound tea culture, standing as the core engine of China's green tea export to the world. In 2025, its tea export volume hit 18.53 million tons, accounting for nearly half of China's total tea exports, with pearl tea and eyebrow tea as the iconic green tea varieties for overseas trade. This glory traces back to ancient times: the province's tea cultivation and processing history spans over a thousand years, with the Jingshan Tea Banquet – a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage – embodying the elegance of Zhejiang's tea ceremony culture, where every step from tea brewing to tasting carries the philosophy of harmony between man and nature. Endowed with mild climate and fertile soil, Zhejiang's tea mountains breed premium tea leaves, and the time-honored handcrafting techniques, from fresh leaf picking to pan-frying, ensure the pure flavor that has won global recognition for centuries.
Today, Zhejiang's tea export industry innovatively inherits cultural heritage while adapting to global consumption trends, redefining the international spread of Chinese tea culture. Beyond traditional pearl and eyebrow tea, matcha, famous high-quality tea and new-style tea drinks have become new export growth drivers, with a year-on-year export growth of over 20% in 2025. The province leverages cultural exchanges like overseas tea art performances and international tea experience events to let global consumers experience tea picking, processing and brewing on site, turning simple product export into in-depth cultural sharing. It also builds a standardized quality system aligned with international standards and taps into cross-border e-commerce channels, while relying on overseas Zhejiang business resources to set up tea promotion centers worldwide. As Zhejiang's tea sails to more than 120 countries and regions, it not only brings the mellow taste of Chinese green tea to the world but also takes the profound connotation of Chinese tea culture to every corner of the globe, becoming a vivid cultural bridge between China and the world.
