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Straw plaiting products from E China’s Shandong gain popularity in international market

(People's Daily Online) 13:24, August 09, 2022

Xinhe straw plaiting, with a history of over 400 years, is a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage in east China’s Shandong Province. The raw materials for straw plaiting, such as wheat straw and corn husk, are mainly collected from nature.

A woman makes a straw purse in a company in Xinhe township, Pingdu city, east China's Shandong Province. (Xinhua/Wang Huan)

Xinhe township in Pingdu city of Shandong, known for the craft of straw plaiting, currently has over 90 companies engaging in straw plaiting within the locality, which can altogether produce more than 120 series of products of over 5,000 different styles.

Xinhe straw plaiting products are available in over 50 countries and regions in the world. With over 20,000 practitioners of straw plaiting in the locality, the yearly output value of the straw plaiting products has reached 3 billion yuan ($448 million).

At a workshop in Xinhe township, workers were speeding up production of straw plaiting handiworks ordered by clients from France, the U.S., and South Africa.

“Nowadays, the export of straw plaiting products and business negotiations have become more convenient. Our products can directly reach the Qingdao Port in the province for export. Last month, a client from South Africa came to our company and ordered 7,000 straw plaiting products. We both expect long-term cooperation with each other,” said Li Qiuju, head of a local handicrafts factory.

“By collaborating with the school of design of Qingdao Agricultural University and keeping up-to-date with fashion trends, we have made some adjustments to our products in a bid to further expand domestic and overseas markets. Over the past nearly half a year, we’ve launched over 100 designs,” said Li.

“In 2018, we registered a trademark for our straw plaiting products, aiming to build a brand and then operate it properly. We also manufactured medium- and high-end products and built an industry cluster,” said Wang Jianping, secretary of the Party committee of Xinhe township.

Nowadays, the market value of the straw plaiting brand in Xinhe township has exceeded 600 million yuan. A rural revitalization park has kicked-off construction, and when it is put into operation, will have six functions, including e-commerce incubation, brand cultivation, and storage.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Bianji)

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