The 12th Yantai International Wine Exposition is held at the Yantai International Exposition Center on June 28. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The 12th Yantai International Wine Exposition was held at the Yantai International Exposition Center on June 28.

Themed around "Open, Integration and Share", the expo has attracted the participation of more than 500 wine companies from 58 wine producing areas in 22 countries.

With an exhibition area of 30,000 square meters, the three-day event is set to provide a platform for wine exhibitors from home and abroad to exchange ideas on the wine industry and seek trading opportunities.

Zhang Shuping, Party secretary of Yantai, expressed a warm welcome to all the guests at the opening ceremony and said he hoped that the city, as the largest wine production center of China, would take advantage of the expo as an opportunity to strengthen international exchanges and cooperation.

Leading international chateaux will be present at the expo including Vi?a Herminia Sl in Spain, Deonte Wines and Dowie Doole in Australia as well as Pasque in Italy. Top 10 wine regions?from China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region and Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and orther?areas?are also on hand at the event.

Regina Vanderlinde, president of International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV) makes remarks at the opening ceremony. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Regina Vanderlinde, president of International Organization of Vine and Wine, also known as OIV, which headquartered in the capital of France, also attended the opening ceremony, in her first trip to Yantai.

At the ceremony, Vanderlinde spoke highly of the important role of China's wine planting in the world wine industry.

"China itself is becoming a major actor in the wine sector," Vanderlinde said.

It boasts the second largest wine vineyard in the world and it became the world's 10th largest wine producer in 2018 and also became the fifth biggest wine consumer last year.

Over the past 30 years, the OIV has been strengthening cooperation with provinces and regions in China.

Yantai city has been playing a leading role in the development of China's wine industry, Vanderlinde added.

She also urged participants to take the expo as an opportunity to get a better understanding of the coastal city.

As the largest wine production base in China, the city has held 11 international wine expos since 2007, enjoying high popularity in the wine field at home and abroad.

More than 30 wine promotional activities, including wine tastings, high-end forums, and product release conferences are also to be held during the expo, with several leading companies set to attend such as Changyu Group, Junding Chateau and Great Wall.

A snapshot of the 12th Yantai International Wine Exposition on June 28. [Photo by Xiao Da/chinadaily.com.cn]