As temperatures rise, the Chinese watermelon market enters the busiest time of the year. The supply volume of watermelons is relatively large compared to other fruit varieties. Chinese watermelon production areas are widely distributed across China, especially in Henan, Hunan, and Shandong. Henan has the largest production volume, and supplies nearly 20% of the watermelons in the Chinese market. The overall surface area devoted to watermelon plantation quickly expanded in the last few years, but market conditions are barely satisfactory. The regular production season generally begins in early June and as the supply volume grows, the price falls.
This year the market conditions are different than in previous years. There are clear signs of polarization in the Chinese watermelon market. The price of relatively high-quality watermelons does not decline, but goes up instead. "The market conditions did not look great at the beginning of this season. The purchase price in production areas had already dropped to 0.3 yuan [0.05 USD] per 0.5 kg in early June. However, after the 10th of June the market changed. The increased supply volume did not push the overall price down. Instead, the price began to rise. This is primarily because extreme weather conditions in Henan reduced the production volume, especially the production volume of high-quality watermelons." This is according to Mr. Qin Junjie of Henan Xinxiang Weixing Specialized Watermelon Cooperation.
Watermelon plantation
Mr. Qin further explained: "The hailstorms in Henan took place during the harvest season and had a severe impact on the watermelons. Some of the watermelons were completely ruined for the market. They were simply left to rot in the field. Other watermelons were sold in the market, but their product quality was below average and their price was low. The overall production volume may have declined by as much as 15%. That is why the supply volume of high-quality watermelons is smaller now than it was last year, and so the price of high-quality watermelons is rising."
Watermelons
At the same time, the market conditions in Shandong are somewhat chaotic. Excessive rainfall in Shandong affected the production volume and product quality of the watermelons. The retail price of the 8424 watermelon variety is currently the lowest among several watermelon varieties. That is because Chinese consumers enjoyed this variety for years and most farmers therefore focus on the 8424 watermelon variety, which means that the supply volume of this variety now far exceeds market demand.
For more information:
Mr. Qin Junjie
Henan Xinxiang Weixing Specialized Watermelon Cooperation
Tel.: +86 138 3782 0701