The Global Wine Association Presidents Forum kicks off on Nov 13 in Qingtian county. [Photo/Tide News]

The Global Wine Association Presidents Forum was held in Qingtian county, Lishui city, East China's Zhejiang province on Nov 13.

A major event of the 5th Overseas Chinese Imported Commodities Expo, which was held in Qingtian from Nov 12 to 15, the forum was attended by experts and scholars from home and abroad who shared their opinions on ways to advance international wine culture through mutual learning, innovation, and collaboration.

Giovanni Busi, president of the Vino Chianti Consortium in Italy, said that the wine industry is confronted with many challenges such as climate change, and that this forum offers a valuable platform for dialogue between countries on how to expand the wine market, deal with climate issues, and strengthen future cooperation.

Leo Austin, co-founder of the Old Vine Conference, said that while climate change brings uncertainty to the wine ecology and results in the re-selection of grape varieties, this phenomenon also creates new opportunities.

The wine industry is a key driver of Qingtian's import trade. The county has a 12,000-square-meter wine trading center, which has nearly 1,000 imported wine agency brands and more than 50,000 kinds of wines. The center has an annual turnover of more than 3 billion yuan ($413.91 million).