A Middle Eastern buyer learns about Qingyuan wild-grown tea at the 2026 Abu Dhabi International Food Exhibition. [Photo/Tide News]

Chenfujia Tea Industry, the only Chinese tea exhibitor at the 2026 Abu Dhabi International Food Exhibition, presented white tea made primarily from Qingyuan wild-grown tea. Its flavor and design earned recognition among Middle Eastern buyers.

The United Arab Emirates has a strong tea culture. Local people prefer boiled tea with spices and seek strong aroma and durability.

Chenfujia therefore chose Qingyuan wild-grown tea. Its core product featured dark green packaging with a gold motif of the Leaning Tower of Abu Dhabi, reflecting local preferences for green and gold.

Staff from the Chinese Embassy in the UAE helped promote the tea in Arabic. Buyers praised its aroma, mellow taste, clear liquor, and packaging. After the expo, the first batch of exhibition stock was bought out by local tea traders. The team stayed in the UAE for further talks.

The tea comes from ancient wild-grown tea forests in Jushui township in Lishui's Qingyuan county, Zhejiang province, with over 1,000 mu (66.67 hectares) of trees, some over 500 years old.

This year, tea enterprises from Wuyishan, introduced and settled by Jushui township, partnered with Chenfujia Tea Industry for the first time to process local wild-grown tea into white tea. The Middle East is seen as a key opportunity for Qingyuan wild-grown tea to go global.