Guangdong’s Fruit Exports Trend Upward, Lychee Exports Nearly Double

According to statistics from Guangzhou Customs, fruit exports from Guangdong province have trended significantly upward this year to reach a total volume and value of 1,092.1 tons and 36.18 million Chinese yuan ($5.43 million), year-on-year increases of 27.8% and 14.5%, respectively. Main exports from the province have included lychees, longans, wampees and pineapples, while the primary export destinations were the U.S., Canada, Singapore and Indonesia. The top three production regions in the province were Maoming, Zhanjiang and Zhaoqing, which reported production volumes of 3.96 million tons, 2.86 million tons and 1.81 million tons, respectively, with Meizhou following closely behind at 1.43 million tons. Twelve cities in the northern, eastern and western parts of the province saw increases in fruit production and accounted for three-quarters of Guangdong’s total production volume, with the western region displaying the largest production volume.

Produce Report learned that cities such as Dongguan, Maoming, Zhanjiang and Meizhou organized programs to educate growers how to best export their goods and provided further export guidance through both WeChat and in-person events. Guangdong’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has also implemented several initiatives to encourage exports, including setting up export credit insurance and strengthening financial assistance for local enterprises. Standardization of fruit production and export procedures has also accelerated these processes. Furthermore, Guangzhou Customs recently recommended 25 registered fruit exporters, orchards and processing plants to be part of the “produce basket” initiative of the Pearl River Delta region in an effort to increase sales of local brands.

Lychees have witnessed the highest growth by far this year, with exports of this fruit from Guangdong reaching approximately 3,400 tons and a total value of $14.8 million, year-on-year increases of 75.2% and 122.9%, respectively. Export destinations for lychees from Guangdong included the U.S., Canada, the Netherlands, the U.K., the U.A.E., Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand, Belgium, Italy, France, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, with the top three markets being the U.S., Malaysia and Singapore. Some top lychee varieties exported from Guangdong included Feizi Xiao, Hei Ye and Yu He Bao, while the export volume for other varieties such as Gui Wei has also steadily been gaining traction. In particular, the Feizi Xiao variety lends itself well to export owing to its large size, thick skin and rich flavor, although new breakthroughs in preservation technology have also allowed varieties that were previously more difficult to store, such as Gui Wei and Nuomi Ci, to become popular choices. Lychee prices have also increased this year, with varieties such as Feizi Xiao and Gui Wei selling in U.S. supermarkets for $6 per pound, representing a substantial boost for Guangdong’s lychee farmers.

The establishment of Guangdong Zhongli Agricultural Group Co. Ltd. (Sinolychee) has been this year’s biggest driver behind the province’s increased lychee exports. This enterprise was formed as a joint effort between seven well-established Guangdong lychee export companies, namely, Guangdong Fuyi Agricultural Products Co. Ltd., Zhangzhou Dexing Development Co. Ltd., Guangdong Baishun Agricultural Product Supply Chain Group Co. Ltd., Guangzhou Conghua Hualong Produce Preservation Co. Ltd., Guangdong Yueming Agricultural Development Co. Ltd., Gaozhou Mingjing Agricultural Development Co. Ltd. and Huizhou Xinbu Industries Co. Ltd. Sinolychee is now Guangdong’s largest lychee export enterprise and signals great success for the global development of Guangdong’s lychee industry, even amid the instability of the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, the group has established 24,000 mu (3,950 acres) of growing area with its partners both within and outside Guangdong province. The primary varieties handled by Sinolychee include Feizi Xiao, Gui Wei and Nuomi Ci, in addition to higher-end varieties such as Jinggang Hongnuo, Xian Jin Feng and pitless lychees. The group has now integrated its export processing plants across Foshan, Guangzhou, Maoming, Conghua and Zhanjiang, as well as in Zhangzhou in Fujian province, and has reached a yearly export capacity of approximately 4,000 tons.

Image: Pixabay

This article was translated from Chinese. Read the original article.