Weifang promotes homegrown brands

Weifang, a city in East China's Shandong province, has been making efforts to promote its homegrown brands to empower local economic and social development.

Innovation plays a key role in building a city's brands. Enterprises are encouraged to speed up the transformation of technological innovation achievements, said Pan Yuejie, deputy director of the Weifang municipal publicity department.

Weifang-based Goertek, a maker of electroacoustic components, has increased its focus on developing intelligent gadgets.

From a tiny microphone production factory, the company has grown to become one of the few VR manufacturers in the world to reach a production volume of 1 million units. Goertek has continued to invest big in research and development, and in the last five years, investments have totaled 13.3 billion yuan ($1.91 billion).

Weichai Group, one of China's leading heavy vehicle and component manufacturers, created the first commercial diesel engine in history with a thermal efficiency of 51.09 percent. Given that a higher thermal efficiency translates into less fuel consumption, it is crucial for environment protection and sustainable development.

More products powered by Weichai's powertrain systems have recently been developed, including a Sinotruk ski-waxing truck with a Weichai hydrogen fuel cell system that was used during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.

Suvim, a towel producer in Weifang, develops nearly 1,000 new products every year. Its export volume has ranked first in the towel manufacturing industry for over 23 years, and its brand value stands at 5.81 billion yuan.

Weifang has developed a series of agricultural brands with global fame, with local government's continuous efforts in improving modern agricultural equipment and upgrading breeding techniques.

The Weixian radish has been cultivated for more than 300 years. It has dark green skin and jade green flesh, a crispy texture, and a spicy and sweet flavor, which is popular at home and abroad. The brand value of the Weixian radish is currently 2 billion yuan, according to China's brand valuation.

In addition, Weifang is also a famous ginger production base and distribution center in China. The city has a history of growing ginger for more than 600 years. Changyi ginger, a renowned local ginger brand, had a brand value of 3.48 billion yuan in 2020.