This Day, That Year

Item from July 3, 1995, in China Daily: Chen Zucheng, Party secretary of Chengdazhuang village of Huankou town in Fengxian county of Jiangsu province, cheerfully checks growing conditions of Hongfushi grapes ... Prompted by numerous varieties of fruit throughout the country, China is gaining a reputation as one of the world's major fruit exporters, the Ministry of Agriculture says.

During the first five months of this year, China sold more than $189.5 million worth of fruit abroad ... Major exports of fruit grown in the countryside include coconut, banana, grape, apple, pear and orange ... an increasing number of countries in Asia, Europe and North America have all started to buy fruit from China.

China's growing middle class is fueling the country's demand for imported fruit - fresh fruit imports jumped to 3.3 million metric tons last year, about 23 percent more than the previous year, according to the General Administration of Customs.