On March 20, the 2026 Ningde City Tea Industry Development Conference and the launch ceremony for the "New Tea Era" of Tanyang Gongfu black tea were held in Fu'an City. The event focused on the high-quality development of the tea industry, facilitating the signing of a series of cooperation agreements encompassing production, academia, research, and sales on-site.

Ningde is reported to be a national-level demonstration zone for export tea quality and safety. It boasts 1.1571 million mu of tea gardens and 125 provincial-level or higher leading tea enterprises. Its annual tea output reaches 148,300 tons, with the total output value of the entire tea industry chain exceeding RMB 35 billion. The combined value of its regional public tea brands surpasses RMB 40 billion. Among these, the brands "Tanyang Gongfu" and "Fuding White Tea," each with a brand value nearing RMB 10 billion, are inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Technology is injecting new vitality into the tea industry. In recent years, a 5G-enabled smart tea garden demonstration area has been established in Tanyang Village, Fu'an. Fuding City has developed the "White Tea Big Data Traceability Platform" and an integrated "sky-air-ground" monitoring system. Two national and nine provincial-level digital planting innovation and application bases have been established. Fuding and Fu'an Counties have been designated as the "World White Tea Culture Industry and Technology Center" and the "2025 County for Scientific and Technological Innovation in Tea Industry Development," respectively. These advancements are endowing the traditional tea industry with a modern brilliance.