Qingtian Oil Tea

Qingtian Oil Tea

　　Qingtian Oil Tea is a specialty of Qingtian County, Lishui City, Zhejiang Province. Qingtian is a major oil-tea camellia-producing county in Zhejiang, often referred to as the “oil depot of southern Zhejiang.”

　　Oil-tea camellia is a significant economic crop resource in Qingtian, playing a crucial role in increasing farmers’ income and developing the agricultural product processing industry. It is distributed throughout Qingtian County, mainly in central and western towns such as Zhangcun Township, Laku Town, Shuqiao Township, Zhenbu Township, Haikou Town, Chuanliao Town, and Gaohu Town. The current total planting area has reached 230,000 mu, making Qingtian one of the main production areas of oil-tea camellia in Zhejiang.

　　As one of the key production areas of oil-tea camellia in Zhejiang, Qingtian has broad development prospects. As early as the 1960s, it was honored with the title “oil depot of southern Zhejiang.” Currently, there are four key municipal-level or higher agricultural (forestry) leading enterprises in the county, including Zhejiang Southern Oil Tea Development Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Tenghe Agricultural Specialties Co., Ltd., Qingtian Zhongye Natural Plant Technology Co., Ltd., and Qingtian Zhangdan Ecological Agriculture Development Co., Ltd. Since 2008, it has been included in the Thirty Key Projects of the Qingtian County Government. In 2011, the county’s oil-tea production reached 1,295 tons, generating an output value of 139.5 million yuan. There were over 62,000 farming households engaged in oil-tea cultivation, with an average household income of over 1,000 yuan from oil-tea, and the highest reaching more than 40,000 yuan. Oil-tea has become the main economic source for farmers in the primary producing areas, and the oil-tea industry has emerged as one of the pillar agricultural industries in the region.

　　Tea oil processing enterprises in Qingtian County are committed to building high-quality oil-tea brands, intensifying technological upgrades, and using advanced processing equipment and scientific extraction methods to produce pure natural camellia oil. At the same time, they place great emphasis on brand building to enhance the reputation and influence of tea oil. The “Deep Processing Technology Development of Camellia Cake” project by Zhejiang Southern Oil Tea Development Co., Ltd. was listed in the National Spark Program. The company leads the nation in processing standards, and its products have won awards at national and provincial agricultural product expos. It has also been awarded the title of one of Zhejiang Province’s first “Forest Foods.” The company’s products, such as the “Oujiangyuan” brand camellia oil and camellia cake, are of superior quality and are exported to Southeast Asian countries including Japan, South Korea, and Thailand.