On December 22, the Cherries Committee of Chilean Fresh Fruit Exporters Association (hereinafter referred to as Chilean Cherries Committee) and Pinduoduo, jointly held a joint press conference to welcome the peak sales season.
Juan Jose Vidal Wood, the Chilean Commercial Consul in Shanghai stated at the press conference that Chile's unique geographical environment provides excellent growing conditions for cherries. The local government and the Chilean Cherries Committee have invested a lot of manpower and material resources in the orchard and packaging to ensure the safety and perfection of the production and export supply chain.
"We welcome friends to buy Chilean cherries on Pinduoduo."
At the joint press conference on December 22, the Chilean Commercial Consul in Shanghai (left) and Pinduoduo Corporate Affairs Director Frank (right) attended the event and delivered speeches Photo by Zhong Tianyi
Since the Chilean Cherries Committee reached a strategic cooperation with Pinduoduo last year, the two parties have worked closely and have now formed the shortest supply chain model of "direct supply and direct shipment from Chilean origin". Thanks to this, Pinduoduo’s Chilean cherries in the past three years have seen an average annual increase of 200%.
"We have been committed to bringing more high-quality fruits directly from their origin to thousands of households. We hope Pinduoduo can become one of the largest online sales platforms for Chilean cherries in the 2021-2022 production season," said Frank, Pinduoduo's corporate affairs director at the press conference.
Since Chilean cherries were allowed to be imported into China in 2008, the Chinese market has become the main destination of Chilean cherries for the past ten years. Earlier, the Chilean Cherries Commission issued an official forecast stating that in the 2021-2022 production season, Chilean fresh cherry exports will increase by 2.6% over the previous season, reaching 361,800 tons.
Cristián Tagle, chairman of the Chilean Cherries Committee, believes that the quality of the cherries arriving in the Chinese market will be very good due to the good weather conditions in Chile this year without rain or frost.
However, in terms of relative distance, Chile is the furthest country from China, and cherries are a kind of fruit that needs to be taken care of during the extended transportation time. How to make the cherries that come from so far away still have a fresh taste? It used to be a problem for Chilean growers.
On the afternoon of October 31, the second container of Chilean cherries by air arrived at the Shanghai Huizhan Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market, the largest import fruit trading center in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. Photo by Zhong Tianyi
In fact, as early as late October this year, the first batch of the air-freighted variety, Brooks, was launched in the Jiangnan wholesale market in Guangzhou. However, due to the limited air-freight flights and high freight costs, the price of cherries has remained high.
In mid-December, with the arrival of the first cherry express to Hong Kong, the price of Chilean cherries was steadily decreasing. The varieties that currently are shipped by sea mainly include Santina, Royal Dawn, and upcoming Kordia. Among them, Santina has a high water content and is resistant to storage and transportation. Even after long-distance travel, it can still maintain an excellent condition. It is one of the varieties that have been favored by Chinese consumers for a long time.
Compared with previous years, Chilean cherries are bigger this year. According to the "The Recommended Quality Guide for Export Cherries" issued by the Chilean Cherries Committee, starting from December 1, 2021, the minimum size of cherries sent to China will be upgraded to XL, and the smaller L size will no longer be shipped. At the same time, in accordance with the requirements of the Pinduoduo platform, Chilean cherries must have the "green code" to pass with PCR test reports, disinfection reports, customs quarantine and verification materials.
Since December, before the peak of Chilean cherries sales, this exclusive fruit has long been the focus of Pinduoduo's promotion. At present, the average daily order volume of cherries on the platform has stabilized at more than 50,000 orders. With the support of the "10 billion subsidies" event on the Pinduoduo, during the Chilean Cherries Shopping Day on December 22, including pre-sales, the platform sold more than 250,000 kilograms of Chilean Cherries.
Source: Sohu.com