Visitors taste crab noodles at the fourth Qilihai Crab Festival. [Photo/WeChat account: NH_television]
The fourth Qilihai Crab Festival and the 2026 Ninghe Autumn Shopping Festival launched on Sept 28 at Lutai market in Ninghe district, Tianjin.
The event combines a real-scene market, brand signing, intangible cultural heritage, livestreaming, and interactive experiences.
At the launch, short videos highlighted the crab's cultural history, its aquaculture, and culinary uses. The event also unveiled the Ninghe Crab Noodle Restaurant as a new culinary landmark, further extending the crab industry chain.
Following the ceremony, a themed market, crab-fishing experiences, and exhibition hall sales opened alongside online livestreams. Locals and visitors shopped for crabs, fresh produce, and fruit, while sampling crab noodles.
The festival is now a key driver of Ninghe's eco-agriculture, specialty industry, and rural consumption. Relying on Qilihai wetland resources, the district has built a chain covering breeding, processing, catering, tourism, e-commerce, and brand operation.