Bill Byrne and a delegation of 20 north Queensland leaders, including Charters Towers mayor Frank Beveridge, will meet potential importers in Guandong Province during the five-day trade mission starting on Wednesday. 

‘‘We already export $6.3 billion worth of agriculture and food products per year, but we have great potential to significantly increase this effort,’’ Mr Beveridge said. 

He said China has a rapidly growing middle class that preferred to eat fresh, high-quality produce. 

Beef is Queensland’s largest agricultural industry, worth $5.4billion a year. 

It is the largest beef-producing state in Australia and is the fourth-largest exporter of beef in the world.