Hongze is located in the middle of Jiangsu Province, the People’s Republic of China. Established in 1956, Hongze was named after the famous lake Hongze Lake, one of the 5 largest fresh lakes in China. The total area of Hongze is 1,394 sq.km with water (lakes and rivers) area of 757 sq.km. The population of Hongze is around 390,000. In 2010, Hongze’s nominal GDP posted 14% growth to RMB10.5 billion. The major industries in Hongze include chemicals, machinery, food processing, textile and building material.