Huiyuan Juice Group is to build a winery in China, according to local reports.

Huiyuan Juice will spend CNY500m (US$79m) to build a winery in north China's Jilin Province, according to China Business newswire today (7 March). Once complete, the facility will have an annual production capacity of 3,000 tons of grapes, the publication said.

Separately, the China Perspective publication cited Huiyuan's chairman, Zhu Xinli, as saying that the winery will generate CNY600m in annual sales once up and running. The reports could not be immediately confirmed by just-drinks.

The move is another sign of growing corporate interest in China's domestic wine industry. Last month, Moët Hennessy announced a joint-veture deal to produce a high-end red wine inside China.