After another successful international food trade fair in Yantai, Shandong province, organizers are looking to take the event overseas in a bid to gain footholds in new markets.

The 12th East Asia International Food Trade Fair in Yantai resulted in the signing of cooperation agreements worth 1.60 billion yuan ($237 million).

With the theme of "Green, Innovation, Cooperation and Development", the event, which was held from June 2 to 5, attracted more than 900 enterprises from home and abroad. They brought more than 13,000 food products covering 16 categories, from imported food to time-honored Chinese products.

The fair also brought together many supermarket chains, dealers and e-commerce operators. Enterprises from 27 provinces and cities in China presented their products at the fair. More than 100 food enterprises from Sichuan brought more than 100 products to the fair, including local liquors, pigs, tea, pickles, condiments and snacks.

Exhibitors from Jilin also made appearances as a group, presenting, among other products, ginseng, forest frog's oviducts and pilose antler, known as the "three treasures in Northeast China". Enterprises in Harbin offered Qing'an rice, time-honored Harbin sausages and other specialties.

Besides providing a business platform for food enterprises and dealers, the fair aroused enormous interest among local residents, especially the elderly who visited the booths in search of East Asian specialties at bargain prices.

The fair set up a special exhibition area designated for local products of the same standard and quality as imported ones, including preserved fruit, nuts, seafood, canned food, juices and jellies. Residents had access to the same high-quality food without having to go to Japan, the United States or European countries.

In addition to the food fair, Yantai also hosted a trade fair for Jiangxi specialties and an expo of imported maternal and child products.

The annual food trade fair provides an opportunity for Yantai to enhance international exchange and serves as an important platform for high-quality food enterprises from home and abroad to display their products.

Organizers of the fair are looking to host the event outside Yantai and even outside China in an effort to explore domestic and overseas markets.