A foreign guest learns about Ningxia's wine during the opening ceremony of the 47th World Congress of Vine and Wine in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Oct. 12, 2026. (Xinhua/Wang Peng)
Yinchuan, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, has seen a flourishing vine and wine sector with two international events held here simultaneously.
The 47th World Congress of Vine and Wine & OIV General Assembly kicked off on October 12. On the same day, the 6th China (Ningxia) International Wine Culture and Tourism Expo also opened.
The two events hosted concurrently in Yinchuan are a testament to decades of dedicated development of the wine industry at the eastern foot of the Helan Mountain and Ningxia's deeper integration into the global wine sector.
It is reported that it is the first time the congress has been hosted in Asia since its launch in 1924. The event has drawn more than 800 participants, including delegates from 51 member states of the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV), foreign diplomats and representatives, leading experts and scholars, and heads of business associations and leading enterprises.
In 2025, China officially joined the OIV. Thanks to the solid wine industrial foundation over decades at the eastern foot of Helan Mountain, Yinchuan was unanimously voted as the host city for the 47th congress at the OIV General Assembly.
The eastern foot of Helan Mountain creates ideal conditions for grape cultivation as the mountains block cold currents and sandstorms and the Yellow River supplies irrigation water, with sufficient sunlight and temperature differences between day and night. It is widely recognized in the vine and wine industry as a prime terroir for premium wine.
By 2025, Ningxia boasted 606,000 mu (about 40,400 hectares) of wine grape plantations, accounting for around 40 percent of China's total. Ningxia, home to 261 wine enterprises, including 130 wineries, produces 140 million bottles of wine annually.
Beyond industrial scale and quality strengths, Ningxia has aligned its industrial standards with international OIV norms. Over 70 percent of the regional technical standards are consistent with the OIV system. A full-chain framework covering legislative control, quality traceability, testing and certification has been established.
Backed by this robust governance system, the eastern foot of Helan Mountain has forged a distinctive path of ecological empowerment, integrated wine and tourism, and income growth for local residents, which serves as a model for China's wine industry transformation. (Edited by Hu Pingchao with Xinhua Silk Road, hupingchao@xinhua.org)
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