"The blueberry season in Guizhou begins every year in May and continues until August. The production areas suffered from excessive rainfall in the second half of June. Many of the blueberries burst. The overall production volume in Guizhou declined by 10% in comparison with last season." This is according to Mr. Long of Guizhou Blueberry Impression Industrial Development Co., Ltd.
"The current price of conventional blueberries is around 20-60 yuan [2.85-8.56 USD] per 0.5 kg. The price of organic blueberries is around 80 yuan [11.41 USD] per 0.5 kg. The price of Chinese blueberries has shown an upward trend for several years now, but the price increase is not big. Blueberries from various production areas enter the Chinese fruit market at different times. Furthermore, the blueberry production volume is relatively small in comparison with other fruits. The blueberry market is therefore quite stable. The blueberries from production areas in Yunnan entered the market in March this year. At the beginning of the season the price was relatively high. However, by the time blueberries from Guizhou entered the market in May, the supply volume of Yunnan blueberries was nearly exhausted. For that reason market competition was not intense."
The organic orchard of Blueberry Mountain Unique Agricultural Development Co., Ltd. in Guizhou Province covers an area of 1,187 hectares. The fruit-bearing blueberry bushes cover an area of 200 hectares. The annual production volume is around 1 thousand tons.
The company plans to cultivate an additional 800 hectares by 2020 to bring the overall surface area devoted to organic blueberry plantation to a total of 2 thousand hectares. The entire area will reach fruit-bearing age in 2022, which will expand the annual production volume to around 8 thousand tons.
"We mainly focus on the domestic market. We have an annual retail volume of around 2 thousand tons. We mainly sell our products in the coastal areas of China," explained Mr. Long. When asked about consumer trends, Mr. Long answered, "Domestic blueberries are quite small. Our largest blueberries have a diameter of 18 mm. Imported blueberries usually have a diameter of 20 mm or more. However, size is not the main concern for Chinese consumers. They pay more attention to the sugar content of fruits. Sweet fruits are quite popular in the Chinese fruit market. For example, our "Brilliant" blueberry variety has a full flavor and a sugar content of more than 16.4%. This is the sweetest blueberry variety produced in China."
"The annual sales volume of this blueberry variety is impressive. Furthermore, while the overall supply of blueberries is extremely varied, Chinese consumers are not that familiar with different blueberry varieties. They find it difficult to tell from appearance whether the blueberries are ripe or beginning to rot. Chinese consumers therefore base their choice for blueberries on the packaging. Another trend in the Chinese fruit market is growing attention for healthy fruit and therefore more interest in organic fruit. The market demand for organic fruit grows every year. Many consumers choose the packaging that indicates the fruit was organically produced, even if the fruit is more expensive."
When asked about the market advantage of his company, Mr. Long explained, "The largest blueberry production area of south China is in Majiang County, Guizhou. The overall surface area devoted to blueberry plantation in Majiang is expected to reach 5,333 hectares in 2020. The geographical location and the weather conditions are both extremely suitable for blueberry cultivation. Our company has air-conditioned warehouses with a capacity of 5 thousand tons. We also have an automated Compac-system from New Zealand. This automated system handles fruit selection and packaging. We work hard to provide our customers with top-quality fresh fruit." Apart from blueberries, Guizhou Blueberry Impression also sells blueberry juice and blueberry jam.
For more information:
Long Junhua
Guizhou Blueberry Impression Industrial Development Co., Ltd.
Tel.: +86 15285251325