A national-level symposium themed “One Belt One Road” (5,000-Kilometer Tea Road) and Wufeng Tea was held in Wufeng County on April 18-19. More than 200 experts and scholars across the country gathered here to visit the Wufeng Ancient Tea Road, which has been confirmed as the 400-kilometer Ancient Road that was formed during the business exchanges, and has constituted an important part in the Sino-Russian 5,000-Kilometer Tea Road since the 18th century.

The Wufeng Ancient Tea Road extends over 400 kilometers running through Caihuatai Village, Xingyanping Village and the mountains in the Yuyangguan Section, along which there are many ancient stone bridges, inns with sheds for carts and animals, hostels, inscriptions and historic sites. It’s honored as one of the Ten New Discoveries in Hubei’s Third Archeological Survey. At the symposium, 5,000-Kilometer Wufeng is verified as one of the five cities along the 5,000-Kilometer Tea Road of Hubei Province by Zhao Xiaotian, the head of Journalism Institute in Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Liu Zaiqi, Professor of Wuhan University, Yan Mingqing and Liu Xiaohang and other experts of 5,000-Kilometer Tea Road. Through this tea road, the black tea produced in Hunan and western Hubei has been transported to the Hankou tea market and taken up a large share in China’s black-tea trade to Britain and Russia.          

 Wang Yinghua, Vice Mayor of the Yichang Municipal Government, notes that this symposium symbolizes a critical move for Wu Feng County to integrate itself into the national “One Belt One Road” strategic development. In addition, it is also an effective way to promote the traditional folk culture of the area and publicize specialized brands. He hopes that all departments related, tea enterprises and media could join hands to dig out the most unique aspects of the tea culture of Wufeng County, and then promote its special folk culture, local brands and ecological advantages.     

Before the symposium, the experts and scholars also went to visit the Hanyang Bridge built in the period of Tongzhi (the Qing Dynasty), located at Caojiaping Village in Yuyangguan Town. They also visited an ancient tea road with over 500 meters, the original site of Yuantai Tea House in Yuyangguan Town, Longwangmiao Port and the Wufeng Refinement Tea Processing Factory built on the original site of Jundafu Tea House, etc.