From farm to table and Wisconsin to China

Wisconsinites have sold wild ginseng to China for hundreds of years. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The US state's motto is 'Forward', and that's what it is doing with its exports to China, including ginseng, cranberries and cheese

In the early 1900s, farmers in Marathon County in central Wisconsin who grew ginseng started talking about China.

Today, their grandchildren closely watch the latest news about the country on trade, currency exchange and the growing middle class－and for good reason.

Wisconsin is the largest grower of ginseng in the United States, and China is the biggest importer.

A hundred miles down south is the village of Warrens, where China was rarely brought up as a topic a decade ago among cranberry growers. In recent years, the growers have looked beyond the saturated US market to the world's second-largest economy.

And Wisconsin, known as "America's Dairyland", is promoting its artisan cheese to China.

While not many Chinese consumers have a taste for artisan cheese－US cheese consumers eat an average of 34 pounds a year, while Chinese consumers eat an average of only 2 pounds－some think it may become as popular as chocolate in China.