An enchanting tea garden in Songyang county. [Photo/Tide News]

The 16th China Tea Merchants Conference will take place on March 26-28 in Songyang county – administered by Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province – according to a news conference held recently.

It will feature a series of events including a tea garden opening ceremony, a development promotions meeting and an achievements exhibition – to display Songyang's rich tea culture, dynamic tea industry and innovative tea technology.

The conference is also expected to serve as a platform for cooperation and exchange among tea producers and distributors nationwide.

Three ceremonies will be staged during the conference, to launch a tea e-commerce policy, a new tea brands cluster and a tea garden eco-friendly development system in Songyang.

An online marketing special event for spring tea will be held on TikTok, the popular short-video platform, with the participation of top live streamers, local live streamers and county leaders.

An on-site tea production and sales matchmaking meeting will be co-organized with Southern Zhejiang Tea Market to offer a spring tea, organic tea and bulk tea ordering platform for tea merchants.

Songyang county boasts 153,200 mu (10,213 hectares) of tea gardens, which generate a total industrial supply chain output value of more than 13.5 billion yuan ($1.96 billion). The county has a large population engaged in the tea industry, which contributes significantly to the incomes of its farmers and total agricultural output value.