Visitors check out ceramic products made in Dehua county, Fujian province. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Porcelain manufacturers are exporting products to economies across the world

Fang Meng, a 32-year-old mother who took her son on a trip to Dehua county, East China's Fujian province, was dazzled by the sea of cartoon figures in Shunmei Group's display center.

From Mickey Mouse to Minions, from Hello Kitty to Snow White, Fang and her son could not believe that these well known cartoon figures from all over the world were made in a mostly rural Chinese county.

"It's as if we are taking a tour in a theme park. It's just like the porcelain version of Disneyland!" Fang exclaimed.

Shunmei Group is a major ceramics manufacturer for an array of widely known global brands including Disney, Walmart, Universal Studios and Coca-Cola.

More than 2,600 local companies in Dehua county are involved in the ceramics industry, exporting their products to economies across the world, especially countries and regions involved in China's Belt and Road Initiative.

Dehua county, along with Jingdezhen in Jiangxi province and Liling in Hunan province, has long served as a major national porcelain hub.

More than 100,000 villagers out of 330,000 in the county work in the ceramics industry. Products from Dehua were popular along the ancient Maritime Silk Road, which started in Fujian province.

The latest data from local authorities show that about 80 percent of Dehua's products are sent abroad to more than 190 countries and regions.

"Right now in Dehua, the ceramics industry has become more globalized with opportunities brought by the Belt and Road Initiative," said Zheng Pengfei, general manager of Shunmei.

Since the launch of the initiative in 2013, an increasing number of local companies have scrambled to take advantage of this new opportunity.

Zheng said that his company's products alone have been exported to more than 80 countries and regions, including Germany, France, the Netherlands and the United States, even though the company was just a small family workshop several years ago.

"It is innovation that drives us to combine traditional ceramic techniques with modern designs, so that our products can meet the demand from global markets," Zheng said.