Xu Xiaohu at Qingdao Pulses Congress/
“A small bean connects the big world”

Xu highlighted three key developments shaping China’s pulse industry: a shift from volume to value, growing supply-chain diversification and greater demand for higher-value products. Deep-processed pulses are growing faster than raw materials, with expanding applications in plant-based foods, beverages, meat alternatives and other food products, while Chinese suppliers are increasingly targeting international markets with value-added products.

At the same time, Xu emphasized China’s growing importance as a source of certainty in an increasingly unpredictable global supply chain, pointing to new market access for products from Kazakhstan, Tanzania and other origins. Looking ahead, he identified innovation and collaboration as essential to building a more resilient and competitive industry, highlighting smart agriculture, advanced processing and R&D as priorities while calling for greater cooperation across the global pulse trade.

View the complete opening speech