The 5th World Sichuan Cuisine Conference, with the central theme "Let the World 
Love Sichuan Cuisine", will commence on November 3 in Ya'an, Sichuan Province, 
China. As the host city, Ya'an will give full play to local characteristics and 
present a unique experience of "tasting Sichuan cuisine, enjoying Ya'an tea, 
and meeting the giant panda". The World Sichuan Cuisine Skills Competition & 
Sichuan Street Food Competition, World Chinese Hotpot Banquet Competition and 
the Global Sichuan Cuisine Industry Development Summit will also take place 
during the span of the Conference, according to Ya'an Municipal People's 
Government.

Sichuan peppercorn, a produce of Ya'an, endows Sichuan cuisine its unique 
flavor. In addition, Ya'an is home to two exclusive world-class cultural 
beacons, namely the "scientific discovery site of the giant panda" and "origin 
of tea culture", and the city's historical culture and culinary culture blend 
in harmony. This seamless combination is exactly the reason why this Conference 
is held in Ya'an this year.

As one of the four major cuisines of China, Sichuan cuisine is renowned for 
embracing distinctive "numb and spicy" flavor. The Sichuan peppercorn produced 
in Ya'an carries a rich aroma and intense tingly-numbing sensation. A myriad of 
famous Sichuan dishes prepared with Sichuan peppercorn such as "Spiced chicken 
with chili sauce" and "Ya-fish (Schizothorax prenanti) in hot clay pot" 
represent the "numb" flavor dubbed the "soul" of Sichuan cuisine, as it is 
widely considered a stand-out in the "one style in each dish, hundred flavors 
in a hundred dishes" of Sichuan cuisine.

Moreover, Ya'an is the birthplace of global tea culture. The earliest record of 
artificial tea cultivation in China mentions Mengding Mountain in Ya'an, which 
is well-known for its rich biological diversity and superb natural resources 
that give rise to the celebrated Mengding Mountain tea and Tibetan tea of 
remarkable quality.

Equally amazing is that the giant pandas were discovered in Ya'an. In 1869, 
French missionary and scientist Pere Armand David made the first scientific 
discovery of the giant panda in the forest of Ya'an, and thereafter the 
endangered giant panda became an important subject of scientific research. 
Today, the giant panda is renowned as a "national treasure of China", a "living 
fossil" recognized around the world, and a global culture and symbol that helps 
bring attention to biodiversity.

The Sichuan Cuisine Conference is going to be a joyful gastronomic encounter, 
and a fruitful cultural exchange, furnishing people around the world not only 
with an occasion to savor the delights of Sichuan cuisine, taste the sweet 
bouquet of Ya'an tea, revel in the cuteness of the adorable giant panda, but 
also an opportunity to experience the charm of the ecological environment and 
the vigorous development of the cultural tourism industry of Ya'an.

Source: Ya'an Municipal People's Government