The Annual Output of Gold Accounting for One Quarter of the National Total

Yantai, a renowned "Land of Gold" throughout the world, with the annual output of gold accounting for nearly one quarter of the national toatl, has retained the title of Number One City of Gold Production in China for 20 years in succession. Gold deposits and gold mineralized places have been discovered in 11 of the 12 counties and districts under its jurisdiction, 8 of which are engaged in goldmining and have opened 49 gold mines of township level and higher. The city has set up a well-structured serialized system of gold industry with a complete range of specifications, including prospecting, survey, mining, mineral separation, smelting, gold ornaments processing, mine designing and machine manufacturing and repairing, etc. There have established one after another a series of fine-processing and high value-added gold industries, such as China's largest specialized gold smeltery, gold and silver jewlery fabrication factory, and gold wire factory, etc.

Abundant Resouces of Products

Yantai is rich in various products and natural resources. Its mineral, marine, biological, aquatic and agricultural resources have laid the foundation of its economic development. The ascertained mineral resources include gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, iron, molybdenum, marble, magnesite, etc. over 40 types of minerals in all. More than 20 of them have been opened to mining, among which gold, speckstone, marble and magnesite have proved to be rich ores in China. Yantai also has abundant agricultural resources. The fertile soil along the rivers and the sea, in combination with the superb climatic conditions, is most suitable for growing fruits and crops such as wheat, corn, sweet potatoes, peanuts etc.

Yantai Apples and Laiyang Pears

Yantai, a well-known "land of fruits", is China's largest cultivation area of cash apples. The Yantai Apple and the Laiyang Pear are famous all over the country. The annual output of the Yantai Apple, which is the principal variety of fruits in Yantai, is 1.9 million tons, accounting for one ninth of the total yield of apples in the country, and the export volume of the Yantai Apple constitutes one quarter of that of the whole country. At a national appraisal Conference 1994, fifteen varieties of the Yantai Apple were rated, with seven at the top of the list, among the twenty-one high-quality fruits in northern China. Famous equally to the Yantai Apple is the Laiyang Pear, the time-honoured fruit of the "land of fruits", with a cultivation history of over 300 years. The cultivation area of Laiyang pears has increased to over 3300 hectares and the annual yield is about 80,000 tons. Rough of peel but fine of pulp, the crisp, sweet and juicy Laiyang Pear with a sugar content as high as 9.76% is not only a fresh luscious fruit but also the staple of Laiyang Pear Syrup, which is good for restoring energy, reducing phlegm and relieving coughs. Yantai is also the growing area of China big cherries, the only concentrated area for cultivating big cherries in present-day China. The big cherry is praised as the "Champion of Fruits", the "the first fruit of Spring" that ripens earlier than any other northern fruits. In addition, each year Yantai supplies the whole country with tens of millions of kilograms of grapes and peaches, and millions of kilograms of red persimmons and haws.
An Important Fishery Base of China

With a coastline (including island coastlines of 909 kilometers and over 600,300 hectares of exploitable shoals and mudflats, Yantai has abundant aquatic resources. There are over 30 varieties of cash fishes and crustaceans, such as hairtails, small yellow croakers, Spanish mackerels, Chinese herrings, Japanese mackerels, spotted maigres, snappers, perches, skates, mullets, prawns, prawns with falcon talon-like claws, swimming crabs, sea cucumbers, etc, and 20-odd varieties of molluscs and algae, such as oysters, mud blood clams, clams, scallops, abalones, razor clams, kelp, belt weeds and red laver, etc. Its yield of scallops accounts for over 70% of the national total, ranking first in the country. The most delicious of all the aquatic delicacies of Yantai are the big, tender and nourishing prawns of the Bohai Gulf, known as the "big Prawns of the Orient" to the international markets. The Yantai sea cucumber, a type of stichopus japonicus, is rich in protein, the best among the 20-odd varieties of edible sea cucumbers found in China. The main production area of abalones, which have been considered to be the "Champion of Seafoods" since ancient times, is coextensive with the sea waters around the Changshan Islands. Apart from its tender and tasty meat, the abalone's shell is a traditional Chinese medicine named "concha habiotidis". Besides, the palatable "Swan's Egg", Zishifang clams and prawns with falcon talon-like claws are all precious aquatic products of Yantai.

(Source:www.china-sd.net)