New Pak-China agri-route opens

Sea-rail corridor cuts chili delivery time by 7-10 days, offers gateway to southwest

CHENGDU:

A new sea-rail route linking Pakistan with Chengdu is offering more than a faster way to bring Pakistani dried chilies into China. It could also provide a new channel for Pakistani agricultural products to reach the vast food-processing and consumer market in southwestern China.

Li Jiarun, head of the trade business at Chengdu International Railway Port Economic and Technological Development Zone Construction and Development Co, Ltd, said the significance of the route extends beyond individual shipments.

"From our perspective, the key is not simply to bring Pakistani chilies to Chengdu, but to explore a new model for international agricultural trade serving the southwest Chinese market," Li said.

The chili trade provides a natural starting point. China imported about 400,000 metric tonnes of dried chilies in 2025, with Pakistan, India and Myanmar among the major suppliers, according to figures cited by Li. Sichuan and Chongqing have become major chili-consuming markets, fuelled by the region's hotpot culture and large food and beverage industry.

Much of the chili supply for southwestern China has traditionally moved through distribution hubs in northern and central China before reaching the region. The process can involve multiple rounds of unloading, storage and redistribution, adding time and cost to the supply chain.

The new route shortens that journey. Pakistani chilies can enter China through Qinzhou Port in Guangxi and, after customs clearance, be transferred directly to rail services bound for Qingbaijiang in Chengdu. Compared with the traditional route via Qingdao, the corridor can cut transit time by about seven to 10 days and reduce logistics costs by around 1,000 yuan per metric tonne.

The time savings come from a shorter sea voyage from Pakistan to Qinzhou and fewer transfers once the cargo reaches China.

For Chengdu, however, the bigger opportunity lies beyond transportation. Qingbaijiang has logistics, bonded warehousing and temperature-controlled storage facilities that can support agricultural trade. The longer-term goal is to link transportation with warehousing, trading, processing and distribution, allowing Chengdu to serve as a gateway between overseas agricultural suppliers and markets in southwestern China.

"This is what we mean by integrating transportation, trade and industry," Li said.

The company plans to use Pakistani dried chilies as a starting point for developing a larger southwestern chili distribution centre.

More than 80 metric tonnes of high-quality dried chilies from Pakistan have arrived at Chengdu International Railway Port, opening a new cross-border logistics route for agricultural products and giving fresh impetus to China-Pakistan agricultural and trade cooperation.

The shipment, comprising eight containers, entered China through Qinzhou Port before being transported to Chengdu by sea-rail intermodal service under the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor. It is the first shipment to arrive in China under an agricultural cooperation project associated with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Following the arrival of the first eight containers, more than 900 metric tonnes of additional Pakistani dried chilies are being shipped, with the service expected to move towards regular operations.

Chengdu International Railway Port is seeking to leverage its transportation advantages to expand trade and support industrial development. As a key node linking the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor with China-Europe freight train services, the port provides facilities for cross-border logistics, bonded warehousing, distribution and trade.

"China has three major chili distribution centres in Qingdao, Henan and Guizhou, while Sichuan and Chongqing, despite being major consumer markets, have long lacked a specialised, large-scale distribution hub," Li said.

The imported Pakistani chilies are being supplied to downstream industries, including major catering companies such as Haidilao, local hotpot restaurants and condiment producers, including manufacturers of Pixian Douban. The project is helping build an integrated supply chain covering overseas cultivation, cross-border transportation, distribution, processing and final consumption.

For Pakistan, the new route provides an additional channel for agricultural products to reach the Chinese market. For southwest China, it offers a more direct supply of imported chilies to the region's growing hotpot, condiment and food-processing industries.

The arrival of the Pakistani dried chilies marks another step in turning international transport corridors into platforms for trade and industrial cooperation, while strengthening links between Pakistani agricultural producers and China's regional food industry.