Wisconsin ginseng producers hope to tap growing Chinese market at Int'l Import Expo

Ginseng products from the U.S. state of Wisconsin will be on display at the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) to be held in Shanghai in early November.

Marathon Ginseng International Inc. from the state registered to attend the expo the first time it heard of the fair. "It is a big event in China. We will have a stall there," Jiang Mingtao, founder of Marathon Ginseng, told Xinhua.

At the expo, the company will display its Monken Garden brand ginseng gift boxes, ginseng cosmetics, ginseng liquor, and ginseng extract tonics.

By attending the expo, Jiang hopes to promote cooperation between American ginseng farmers and Chinese companies and to bring world famous Wisconsin ginseng to Chinese consumers.

"We hope to enhance the reputation of ginseng produced in the state of Wisconsin in the U.S., and let more Chinese consumers know our products," Jiang said. "It will help boost our export to China in the future."

Marathon Ginseng is targeting China as its major consumption market. Founded in 2010, the company began to export ginseng to China in 2012, and exports peaked in 2015 and early 2016, when about half of its production was exported to China.

Statistics show that there are about 180 ginseng farms in Wisconsin producing around 1 million pounds (453,000 kg) of ginseng every year, and about 70 percent of the output has been exported to China.

Kirk Baumann and his younger brother Kraig Baumann run the biggest ginseng farm in Wisconsin, having 600 acres under cultivation and planting another 200 acres annually.

"We produced about 200,000 pounds (91,000 kg) and export most of it last year. We also did buy from the local people here in the industry probably around 80,000 pounds (36,000 kg) of product to fill our needs for the export market in China," Baumann told Xinhua.

Though Wisconsin produces only 10 percent of the world's ginseng output, the product is of "high quality," says Baumann. "Chinese economy is growing, the middle classes growing a bit, I think the market's getting stronger."

The Baumann Farm has opened an office in Shanghai to market its ginseng products.

Given China's huge population and as living standards improve, Wisconsin, known as "America's Dairyland" and known for its cheese and cranberries, wants to capitalize on the Asian giant's massive growth.

Officials from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture will attend the upcoming import expo, the state's International Trade Representative Jennifer Lu told Xinhua.

Talking of the upcoming Chinese import expo, Wisconsin Cheese Association President John Umhoefer told Xinhua that it's important for China and the United States to learn from each other.

"The Americans are learning how and what the Chinese people want, and likewise China has to learn what we have to offer ... So it's important for us to visit China to learn what it is you would like," he said.