Tax reduction is needed to lower the production cost of the wine industry in Ningxia and improve its competitiveness, said Bai Shangcheng, deputy to National People’s Congress (NPC) from Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region during the ongoing 4th session of the 12th NPC held in Beijing on March 9.

Given that a great deal of wine is imported into China every year, the domestic wine industry is faced with great sales and production pressures, he said. The wine produced at the Eastern Foothill of the Helan Mountain has become renowned across the world and it is necessary for the industry there to enjoy preferential policies so as to realize a leap-forward development, such as tax reduction, he added.

It is reported that the Eastern Foothill of the Helan Mountain has become the largest wine grape production area across China with the planting area totaling 33,333 hectares. There are now over 180 chateaus and the annual output value has reached 16 billion yuan in the region.