Xiamen Calling: 2021 China International Label Innovation Development Forum and 2020 Fujian Printing Association Annual Meeting

Fujian's printing sector is powering ahead. As one of China's major processing hubs for electronics and electrical appliances, building materials and interior decoration, machinery and equipment, food and beverage, household goods and fine crafts, the province offers fertile ground for supporting industries such as packaging and label printing, both of which have expanded rapidly in recent years.

Industry statistics point to a substantial total printing output value in Fujian, with packaging and decoration printing accounting for a strikingly large share. A packaging and decoration printing belt has essentially taken shape, led by Xiamen, supported by Quanzhou as a secondary hub, and radiating to coastal cities including Zhangzhou, Fuzhou and Putian.

Against this backdrop, the Fujian Printing Association and Labels & Labeling magazine will co-host the 2021 China International Label Innovation Development Forum together with the 2020 Fujian Printing Association Annual Meeting in the coastal city of Xiamen. Themed 'Gathering Strength for Innovation', the event runs from 9:00 to 20:30 at the Xiamen Asia Gulf Hotel and is organised by the Fujian Printing Association and the Labels & Labeling magazine team.

Xiamen is a cornerstone of Fujian's print community. The city counts a large number of registered printing businesses of all types, and its label printing segment has produced a notable cluster of converters with annual output value above RMB 10 million, represented by Fuya, Fulongchang, Xiamen Sansheng, Xinmeiqi, Xinlisheng and Yihuahui. The city's thriving Internet of Things ecosystem, home to more than a hundred related companies, further underpins the development of electronic labels, while high-tech players such as Xinda and Liansheng have emerged.

Greening, digitisation, informatisation and intelligentisation are already taking root in Xiamen and across Fujian. What opportunities and challenges will these shifts create for local printing businesses?

In the first half of the year, as the pandemic gradually stabilises, the printing and packaging industry is preparing to turn a new page: hold the existing line, or explore new possibilities?

How can traditional small and medium-sized printers achieve digital transformation? What changes in brand-owner demands has the new consumption era brought? With successive waves of raw material price increases since late last year, how heavy is the cost pressure on converters? And how can labels and packaging deliver the environmental value and vitality that brands need for sustainable growth?

The China International Label Innovation Development Forum (Xiamen) will provide the answers. Co-organised with the Fujian Printing Association, the event runs alongside the association's 4th Council Meeting of the 8th Session and its 2020 Annual Conference, bringing together leading printing enterprises from across Fujian, authorities in label and packaging printing, and representatives of leading international suppliers - an ideal platform for building elite networks and deepening upstream and downstream collaboration.

Invited supplier representatives will walk attendees through innovations and real-world applications of special processes at every stage, from design and printing through to finishing. High-profile industry guests will review the state of the Chinese market and tackle pain points such as soaring raw material prices, persistently high labour costs and tightening environmental regulations, offering targeted solutions across processes, production and enterprise management, and answering questions on site.

End-brand representatives will also take the stage, starting from real demand in global and Chinese consumer markets and the practical needs of brand owners, to explore in depth the challenges and opportunities that the new consumption era brings to label printing - helping converters broaden their horizons and sharpen their thinking.

As the authoritative media partner of Tarsus Group's Labelexpo Global Series, Labels & Labeling will bring a global perspective to the room, using detailed data analysis to interpret the latest trends and technology highlights in the worldwide label industry, so that domestic label and packaging printers can read the direction of the market.

Gao Yang, President of the Fujian Printing Association, said: 'The 2021 China International Label Innovation Development Forum, co-hosted by the provincial printing association and Tarsus Group, will greatly enrich our 4th Council Meeting of the 8th Session and the 2020 Annual Conference, bringing the latest technologies and development trends to the industry and supporting the healthy, steady growth of printing across the province.'

Liu Tao, Project Director of Labelexpo Global Series China, said: 'Across the wider printing industry, packaging and label printing is the most active and fastest-growing branch, and its global average annual growth rate aligns closely with Fujian's industrial structure. We are honoured to have the strong support of the Fujian Printing Association. Through this event, we help local label printers improve quality and efficiency through technological innovation, while helping printers from other segments understand the real state of play, the entry threshold and the future potential of label and packaging printing - giving them ideas and references for business expansion and transformation, and jointly advancing the prosperity of Fujian's label and packaging printing industry.'

In this mid-spring season, with mountain flowers in bloom and birdsong in the air, let us gather in Xiamen to map out a flourishing spring of high-quality growth for Fujian's printing industry.

The forum adopts a 'tabletop display + case study' format, with in-depth discussion of the topics above.

The forum takes place in the full Bay Hall (North Zone) of the Xiamen Asia Gulf Hotel. Backed by green hills, the venue looks across the sea to Taiwan's Kinmen, Dadan and Erdan islands, while Nanputuo Temple, Xiamen University and the distinctive alleyways of Zengcuoan lie to the south. Sea-view rooms have been reserved for attendees on a first-come, first-served basis.

Address: Huangcuo, Huandao Road, Siming District, Xiamen - within easy reach of Xiamen Station, Xiamen North Station and Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport.

Scan the QR code below to register directly. Printing plants, brand owners and design companies attend free of charge; suppliers pay a participation fee that includes a buffet lunch. Contact: Phoebe, tel 6439 7264, mobile +86 150 0027 5082, email plu@tarsus.co.uk, web www.labelexpo.com. Source: China Packaging Network (pack.cn).