Australia's largest supermarket looks to beef up China trade at CIIE

Australia's largest supermarket chain, Coles, is hoping to ramp up its beef exports to China, as it joins around 3,000 companies from across the globe for the first China International Import Expo (CIIE) which opened in Shanghai on Monday.

With Aussie beef sales in China now worth over 1 billion Australian dollars (720 million U.S. dollars) thanks to an agreement last year to boost Aussie access to the market, Coles chief operating officer Greg Davis told The Australian Newspaper that "Demand for quality Australian foods in China is increasing every year."

"Coles has been exporting meat to Asia for more than 20 years and China is already our biggest market," he said.

On top of red meat, the supermarket giant will also be showcasing a wide range of other produce from Aussie farmers at the expo including exclusive Australian wines, honey, nuts, breakfast cereals and even cleaning products.

"The expo is a great opportunity for us to put the best of Australia's produce before one of the fastest-growing consumer markets in the world."