African roses enter central China province

CHANGSHA, June 18 (Xinhua) -- A total of 2,760 fresh cut roses from Kenya arrived in central China's Hunan Province Tuesday morning, marking the first batch of flowers from Africa directly entering the province.

The first batch of roses were imported and declared to the customs of the airport in the city of Changsha, capital of Hunan, by a Hunan international trade company.

The importer said the quality of flowers produced in Kenya is very good, especially Kenyan roses, which are very popular with consumers all over the world due to its large flower head, straight and long stem, and bright color.

With 11 varieties and multiple colors, the roses were checked and some samples were taken for testing to ensure the safety of the flowers before entering the market.

The flight carrying the fresh flowers was launched last Wednesday, linking Changsha and Kenya's capital of Nairobi.

Before the opening of the direct flight, it used to take about three days for the Kenyan flowers to reach Hunan consumers through ports in other provinces, but the new air route shortens the time to just 14 hours.