CIIE spotlight: Taste Coffee See the World international exchange series debuts at CIIE

(Source: China International Import Expo)

A tiny coffee bean crosses the ocean, departing from plantations in major global coffee producers such as Brazil, Ethiopia, Colombia, Vietnam and Indonesia, and arrives in China after a long voyage. This single bean is both a microcosm of global agricultural-product trade and a vivid window into the trade and economic cooperation opportunities between China and the world. During the 9th CIIE, the “Taste Coffee, See the World” international exchange series debuted at booth 8.2A5-01 in the agricultural and food products exhibition area, using coffee as a tie to build a bridge of dialogue between global producing regions and the Chinese market.

The “Taste Coffee, See the World” international exchange series is co-organized by the CIIE Bureau and the Kunshan Municipal People’s Government, with imported coffee resource display, international supply-demand matching, professional flavor cupping and coffee culture experience as its main content. Through the international coffee supply-demand matchmaking conference, the international coffee flavor cupping exchange and a series of interactive activities, it builds an exchange platform for CIIE exhibitors, buyers, coffee practitioners and on-site audiences.

Coffee is one of the most representative agricultural products in global trade, with an industry chain covering the full spectrum of green-bean cultivation, cross-border international trade, roasting and processing, equipment R&D, and branded end-consumption. Today China has become one of the fastest-growing coffee markets in the world. Over the past decade, domestic coffee consumption has achieved a leapfrog rise; China’s per-capita annual coffee consumption continues to climb, and not only do first- and second-tier cities maintain strong coffee consumption, but county-level markets are also rising rapidly. Coffee has gradually shifted from a niche drink to a mass daily consumption choice. Robust domestic demand keeps pulling global green-bean imports to China, and more and more overseas producing regions are turning their eyes to the large Chinese market.

This event will invite exhibitors from major global coffee producing regions to gather at CIIE, pushing more imported coffee products from “exhibits” to “commodities” and expanding the cooperation space for quality global coffee resources to enter the Chinese market. It is worth mentioning that Kunshan itself produces not a single coffee bean, yet has grown into an important hub of the domestic coffee industry, forming a complete industry chain covering green-bean import trade, roasting and processing, equipment R&D, and brand incubation, and building the Asia-Pacific coffee green-bean distribution center. It gathers green beans from many countries around the world, and over 60% of the nation’s coffee roasting capacity is clustered here, realizing “global procurement, centralized warehousing, domestic distribution” — coffee beans from afar are distributed and roasted here, then flow to households across the country. Relying on the CIIE platform and Kunshan’s mature industrial foundation, the event will further expand imports of coffee-related products, promote the effective connection of overseas coffee resources with domestic procurement, processing and consumption demand, and share the dividend of China’s super-large market.

Asia-Pacific Coffee Green-Bean Distribution Center

Looking to the industry’s future, China’s coffee market still holds broad growth space. On one hand, the consumer base keeps expanding, consumption scenarios keep extending, and products iterate toward localization, segmentation and functionality; on the other hand, the industry’s competitive focus is gradually shifting to supply-chain strength, with upstream links such as green-bean trade, warehousing and distribution, roasting and processing, and equipment manufacturing gaining rising importance. For overseas coffee origin countries, the Chinese market brings stable export increments; for the domestic industry, a continuous stream of imported beans provides rich raw-material choices for roasters and coffee brands; as a window of opening-up, CIIE keeps opening the conversion channel of “overseas producing region — CIIE exhibit — domestic commodity,” letting a single coffee bean carry the mutually beneficial cooperation opportunity of two-way win-win, achieving multi-party win-win for producing regions, industry and consumers.

On November 6 and 8, two CIIE-exclusive international exchange events will be held. On November 6, the “Share the Big Market · Export to China” international coffee supply-demand matchmaking conference will promote face-to-face exchanges between exhibitors and Kunshan coffee enterprises, buyers and roasters; on November 8, the “Taste the World · Share the Coffee Aroma” international coffee flavor cupping exchange will build a “World Coffee Flavor Table” with representative coffee beans. During the exhibition, Kunqu opera performances, coffee interactive experiences, AI check-ins and creative coffee handmade activities will also be held simultaneously, promoting the integration of industry exchange, flavor experience and cultural interaction.

Main schedule of the 2026 “Taste Coffee, See the World” international exchange series

• Nov 5 (Thu): Coffee flavor tasting and regular interactive experience
• Nov 6 (Fri): “Share the Big Market · Export to China” international coffee supply-demand matchmaking conference
• Nov 7 (Sat): “Kunshan Charm, Mellow Aroma” elegant Kunqu Opera Day
• Nov 8 (Sun): “Taste the World · Share the Coffee Aroma” international coffee flavor cupping exchange
• Nov 9 (Mon): “Bean Fun Kunshan” coffee creative handmade day
• Nov 10 (Tue): Coffee flavor tasting and regular interactive experience

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