Representatives from nearly 20 foreign-invested companies and institutions, including Bosch, PepsiCo, and Fonterra, attended a recent business matchmaking event organized by the Changning District Commission of Commerce and the Shanghai Foreign Investment Association.

The event grew out of the commission's regular visits to local businesses. Aibaojian, a catering and food supplier backed by South Korea's Samsung Welstory, and Nissei's regional headquarters in Changning had both told the commission they wanted to reach new customers. The organizers then invited association members across the food supply chain and local businesses seeking catering services.

During the event, participants visited Aibaojian's Suzhou branch and Nissei's Kunshan plant to learn about their production capacity, supply chains, and product ranges. The visits gave suppliers and potential customers a chance to meet directly, and several companies reached preliminary understandings on cooperation.

The event also featured a talk by a co-founder of Hongqiao Catering Innovation Valley on the opportunities and challenges Chinese food service companies face when entering overseas markets.

Changning is one of Shanghai's districts with a high concentration of foreign-invested companies. It supports these companies at each stage of their development through its district-level foreign investment association and regular events such as afternoon tea meetings.

Source: WeChat account of Changning district information office "shchangning"