Shanghai's Waigaoqiao port recorded a total of 1,845 tons of sesame imported from Africa this year, according to a report on March 3, marking a 4.3-fold increase year on year, Shanghai Customs said Monday. China is currently the largest import market for African sesame, with Waigaoqiao being the main port of entry in Shanghai. During the first two months of this year, sesame imports came mainly from Mali, Togo, Mozambique, Niger and Tanzania.Wu Zhigang, owner of a grain and oil company in Kunshan City, east China's Jiangsu Province, said that due to their high quality and low price, imports of African sesame were mainly used to extract edible oil. With growing demand for sesame oil products in the Chinese market, Wu's company plans to import more than 10,000 tons of African sesame this year, up from more than 3,000 tons last year.Shanghai Customs statistics show that in the first two months of this year, Shanghai ports imported more than 40,000 tons of African agricultural products, including sesame, worth more than $100 million.