The All-China Environment Federation (ACEF) awarded the "Chinese Environmentally Friendly Enterprise" title to 21 companies on Thursday.

The honorary title is meant to recognize these companies for their fruitful efforts in conserving energy, reducing emissions and promoting environmental protection.

Over 100 firms have been granted the honorary title since 2006, according to sources with the ACEF.

Recognizing these companies' efforts aims to guide all enterprises to adopt clean-production, recycled economy and social responsibility principles, Zeng Xiaodong, the ACEF's vice president and secretary-in-general, said in an interview with Xinhua.

Liu Zhiquan, an official with the Ministry of Environmental Protection, praised the federation for its program of selecting environmentally-friendly firms, calling it a new, long-term strategy to encourage more companies to vie for the honor.