Chongqing - Eggs serve as a daily staple with various uses, and China is the world's largest egg producer, accounting for 40% of global production. Despite over 99% of these eggs being consumed domestically and less than 1% exported, changing economic conditions are now introducing Chinese eggs to new international markets.

In August last year, 600,000 fresh eggs from Biaogan Cooperative, a major egg production base in Chongqing's Changshou District, successfully cleared customs in the Solomon Islands. This marked the first time domestically produced fresh eggs were exported to the country.

After the first shipment of fresh eggs reached the Solomon Islands, a local customer shared a photo of their meal: three fried eggs with a fragrant, crispy shell and a fresh, delicious yolk. "They thought that our products were good and cheap, and they liked them very much," said Liu. "We signed the deal immediately for a 2-year exclusive export order of eggs to their country."

Biaogan Cooperative, with approximately 700,000 laying hens, is family-run and has deep agricultural roots. Its meticulous and pragmatic general manager is Liu Yang.

While many farmers still use traditional open-house models, Liu's team at the rural company has embraced technology, from digital management to scientific farming. They now operate an autonomous egg production line capable of producing 38,000 eggs per hour, which includes classification, cleaning, disinfection, light inspection, and packaging.

Prior to this, they had established long-term collaborations with businesses in Hong Kong SAR, the world's fourth-largest egg importer, known for its stringent egg quality standards. Japan and South Korea are also regular recipients of Chinese egg exports.

"Currently, our laying hen farming technology is among the world leaders," said Liu. "We also recognize the need to expand internationally, as the global market is larger and can generate greater added value for our products."