The 13th East Asia International Food Fair is held in the coastal city of Yantai, East China's Shandong province on June 29. [Photo/sdchina.com]

The 13th East Asia International Food Fair was held in the coastal city of Yantai, East China's Shandong province from June 29 to July 1.

The 4-day event attracted 178,000 visitors, generating total revenue of 2.16 billion yuan ($324 million) according to the event's organizing committee. More than 370 cooperation agreements were signed during the food fair.

Covering 20,000 square meters, the event attracted 1,000 food companies and 11,000 purchasers from countries and regions in East Asia, including South Korea,Japan, Russia, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan as well as 27 provinces in China.

The event offered 1,200 international-standard booths presenting food products in 16 categories, from imported food to traditional Chinese delicacies.

According to the organizers, the fair also set up 17 province-featured zones featuring food products from provinces such as Sichuan, Jilin and Hunan to highlight the diversity of Chinese cuisine.

Exhibitors from Jilin presented, among other products, ginseng, forest frog's oviducts and pilose antler, known as the "three treasures in Northeast China".

Specialties from Sichuan province including bamboo shoots, black tea, preserved products, pepper and sesame delicacies were on offer to tempt the palates of visitors to the fair.

Additionally, a forum for promoting the development of China's food industry was held on June 29 where a total of 300 people discussed ideas for the development of food industry in China.

The annual food trade fair provides an opportunity for Yantai to showcase 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 next year to host the event outside Yantai and even outside China in an effort to further appeal to domestic and overseas markets in the food industry.