金瓶梅三级片

A worker picking tea leaves in a plantation in Anxi County. (Xinhua News Agency / Wei Peiquan)　

　　Environmental Spotlight

　　The inaugural China (Anxi) Global Dialogue on Carbon Neutrality in the Tea Industry was recently held in Anxi County, Fujian Province—renowned as the home of Tieguanyin oolong tea.

　　A major highlight of the event came from Fujian's first Tieguanyin Carbon-Neutral Ecological Demonstration Tea Garden, which reported two significant outcomes: the quality of its tea has improved by one grade, and per-mu (approx. 0.067 hectares) cost savings and efficiency gains have exceeded 3,000 yuan. These achievements stem from a carbon neutrality initiative launched three years ago.

　　This demonstration garden is the result of collaboration between the Anxi Tea Institute at Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University and the NianNianXiang Tea Estate, supported by the Anxi Tea Industry Carbon Neutrality Research Special Task Station. The site now serves as a national showcase for cutting-edge sustainable tea production technologies.

　　From space, the Anxi Tieguanyin No. 1 and No. 2 remote sensing satellites support tea plantations by monitoring pest activity, guiding spatial planning, and enabling quality traceability. On the ground, the National Tea Eco-Hospital—founded by Professors Fan Shuisheng and Gao Shuilian—leverages cloud computing and IoT technologies to create a low-carbon ecosystem integrating ecological restoration, environmental monitoring, coordinated control, and traceability mechanisms.

　　According to Lin Liyan, Director of the Anxi Science and Technology Bureau, a carbon footprint monitoring system for Tieguanyin has already been established. This supports a sustainable development model marked by low energy consumption, minimal pollution, and reduced emissions.

　　China, the birthplace of tea, views the tea industry as vital to rural revitalisation. However, as Dr. Xu Yinlong, a senior researcher at the Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), explains: "The tea supply chain is complex and carbon-intensive, making emission reduction a significant challenge." Nevertheless, he sees the push for carbon neutrality as a historic opportunity for transformation.

　　In response, CAAS, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, and the Anxi County Government have jointly established the Tea Industry Carbon Neutrality Research Institute.

　　Looking forward, Anxi plans to pilot carbon reduction and sequestration technologies across key tea plantations and enterprises. The county also intends to develop a set of technical standards and certification systems for carbon-neutral tea production. "The institute will be based in Anxi but serve the entire nation," Xu said. "It will collaborate with the UN FAO's Low-Carbon Tea Programme, strengthen the integration of academia, research, and industry, and advance innovation, application, and talent development across the sector."

　　Liu Yongqiang, County Magistrate of Anxi, highlighted that ecological sustainability has always been at the heart of Anxi's tea development. The county has embraced a holistic approach—integrating climatic conditions, land use, human expertise, and varietal selection—to build a multi-tiered ecological framework: macro-level county ecosystems, garden-level micro-ecologies, and soil micro-ecosystems. As a pioneer in low-carbon technologies, Anxi hopes to lead by example and, through the new institute, attract top-tier scientific talent to spearhead a national green transformation in tea production.

　　Lan Siren, President of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, emphasised the significance of this dialogue, which focused on carbon neutrality in the tea industry and explored urgent topics such as China's dual-carbon goals, climate change, biodiversity, and low-carbon development strategies. He called for the deeper integration of big data, optoelectronics, and digital technologies to drive the green upgrade of the tea industry.

　　Reporters: Xie Kaifei, with contributions from Yu Junwei, Tang Jinlong, and Su Mude.