Farmer Daily China Rural Network reporter Hou Yajie
In June, the fruit market season was concentrated, and the "fruit plates" of the people became more and more abundant. Domestic cherries, known as the "nobility" of fruits, also "fly into the homes of ordinary people". As the temperature rises gradually, many citizens are pleasantly surprised to find that the price of cherries has dropped from more than 100 yuan per catty at the time of listing to about 30 yuan.
Crisp, sweet, delicious, full and juicy, cherry has become the "king" of the fruit market. Compared with other fruits in the same season, the price of cherry is "riding the dust", which is equivalent to that of durian and mangosteen, while the prices of bayberry and litchi are all below that of cherry, and the value of domestic cherry even crushes foreign cherries.
At present, cherries planted in various places are listed one after another. What is the situation at both ends of cherry production and sales this year? Can cherry freedom be realized? To this end, the reporter conducted an investigation.
The price dropped earlier, but it was at a high level compared with last year.
At three o’clock in the morning, there was an endless stream of buyers in the cherry sales area of Beijing Xinfadi Agricultural Products Wholesale Market in Fengtai District, Beijing. Liu Xiaoyue, the "king of cherries" in Xinfadi, was in full swing. Before seven o’clock, her family’s 15,000 Jin of cherries had been sold out.
"Every day at five o’clock in the morning, fruit farmers start picking in cherry orchard. At ten o’clock in the evening, fresh cherries from Dalian, Liaoning Province can enter the Xinfadi market, and the next morning they can enter the ‘ Fruit plate ’ 。” Liu Xiaoyue told reporters that with the large number of greenhouse cherries in Dalian and open-air cherries in Shandong, the varieties of cherries are much richer than when they were first listed during the Spring Festival, including Meizao from Dalian, red light from Shandong and Russian No.8.
With a large number of cherries on the market, the price keeps falling.
"The price of cherries in Dalian facilities greenhouses is higher, the wholesale price is around 35 yuan/kg, and the price of open-air cherries in Shandong is lower, at 10-15 yuan/kg." Zhang Xiaoyue said that the price of cherries has dropped a lot since it was first listed. In March, the wholesale price of domestic cherries can reach more than 100 yuan per catty. With the large number of open-air cherries listed in Shandong, the price of cherries will further fall in June. "At that time, our purchase volume will also increase, which may reach about 20,000 kilograms per day."
In addition to the time to market, whether the tastes of different cherry varieties can meet the taste buds of consumers has also become a factor affecting the price of cherries.
"The most popular variety at present is Meizao." Zhang Xiaoyue said that Meizao is crisp and not soft, and the meat is thick and juicy. No matter the shape or taste, it can be "shoulder to shoulder" with cherries. Regardless of the early greenhouse or the acquired land, the price is much higher than other varieties, compared with the "sweet and sour mouth". The red light is more than ten to twenty yuan higher.
Located in the Million Fresh Fruits Supermarket in Xicheng District, Beijing, there are different kinds of cherries on the shelves. Fang Yongsheng, the person in charge of the supermarket, told the reporter that in the past few years, the sales situation of cherries was hot, which was more favored by consumers. This year, the sales volume of cherries in supermarkets increased significantly, and the early price of cherries was higher than last year. "We go to Xinfadi market to purchase goods at 10 o’clock every night, and fresh cherries are put on the supermarket shelves at 4 o’clock in the morning. Buy three or four hundred kilograms a day and sell out on the same day. " Fang Yongsheng said.
The income is considerable, and the growers have high enthusiasm for planting.
There are also growers who feel that the cherry market is "hot". "Because consumption is picking up and the market demand is large, more and more people come to Dalian to collect cherries this year, and the price is much higher than in previous years. Last year, the price was around 45-50 yuan/kg on March 10, and this year the price reached 80-85 yuan/kg." Yu Guiyao, chairman of Guiyao Agricultural Cooperative in Pulandian District, Dalian City, Liaoning Province, said.
"Now the price of cherries and the economic benefits of planting cherries are considerable." Yu Guiyao calculated an account for the reporter: a greenhouse with a length of 100 meters and a width of 12 meters and an area of 2 mu costs about 300,000 yuan to build, and the cost of chemical fertilizer, pesticides and labor for planting cherries is about 15,000 yuan a year. If it is well managed, the net income of a greenhouse can reach 150,000 yuan a year.
Yu Guiyao’s cooperative began to develop cherry planting in 2017, and also provided technical services to neighboring farmers through the "cooperative+farmer" model, and unified sales. The planting area has grown from 50 mu at the beginning to 300 mu now. "Now there are more and more cooperative members and more and more clients. It is tiring to grow vegetables in the greenhouse, and you can see real income by planting cherries." Yu Guiyao said.
I came to cherry orchard, located in the home of Qi Yuanmin, a cherry grower in Yanyan Town, Yiyuan County, Shandong Province. Looking around, red cherries were covered with branches in the lush "green sea".
"This year, it has sold more than 10,000 kilograms. The yield of cherries is about 2,000 kilograms per mu, and the income of one mu of land can be more than 20,000." Qi Yuanmin began to plant cherries in 1990s. At present, there are 5 mu of open-air cherry orchard and 15 mu of cherry in greenhouse. "At the end of March, greenhouse cherries began to go on the market, and open-air cherries went on the market in May, which can be sold until June. The income of planting cherries is stronger than that of planting apples. " Qi Yuanmin said with a smile.
"This year is a bumper harvest year, and cherries are growing well." Qin Wei, chairman of Yanya Town People’s Congress, told the reporter that last spring, the cherry blossom was in full bloom, and the persistent high temperature weather caused the cherry blossom to wither rapidly, which seriously affected the fruit setting rate and caused a large-scale reduction in production. Overall, there was no extreme weather this year, and the cherry yield also increased significantly. "Take the red light as an example. This year, the average yield per mu has reached about 2,500 Jin, and the price of fine fruit is around 15 yuan/Jin. The price has dropped by about 25% year-on-year, but the output has increased by about 212.5% year-on-year, and the income per mu has increased by at least 10,000 yuan compared with last year." Qin Wei said.
The market gap is large, and high quality is the core competitiveness.
"Never worry about selling, cracked fruits are in demand." Yu Guiyao told reporters that in recent years, consumers’ acceptance of big cherries has become higher and higher, and the value of cherries has also crushed cherries. Before the year, the price of cherries was 300 yuan /10 kg, while the price of big cherries was 300 yuan/kg, which was still in short supply.
In fact, a few years ago, domestic cherries were once neglected, and many consumers preferred imported cherries. In recent years, with the improvement of the quality and yield of domestic cherries and the decline of prices, the market share of domestic cherries has been increasing.
"Domestic cherries have local advantages. It takes more than a month for cherries to be picked from trees and then returned to consumers. The domestic cherry production area is close to the consumer market, which meets the requirements of consumers for freshness. " Yu Guiyao told reporters that domestic cherries do not need any preservation treatment, and Guangdong and other places can arrive at the latest in two days.
The reporter learned that after more than 20 years of rapid development, China’s cherry cultivation area and output have increased rapidly. In addition to the traditional main producing areas in Shandong and Liaoning, Hebei, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan and other cold highland areas are also actively developing planning, and gradually forming new producing areas such as Tongchuan, Shaanxi, Tianshui, Gansu, Hanyuan, Sichuan and Beijing suburbs.
According to industry insiders, in recent years, with the upgrading of consumption, consumers’ demand for cherries, especially high-quality cherries, has become stronger and stronger. However, at present, there is still a big gap in China’s cherry market, and the situation of partial dependence on imports will not change in the short term due to the limitations of varieties, seasons and the storage-resistant characteristics of cherries.
In order to meet consumers’ demand for high-quality cherries, the producing areas are being actively explored.
"Variety is the key to determine the quality of cherries." Qin Wei told reporters that in order to upgrade cherry varieties, Yiyuan introduced varieties with high recognition from consumers, such as Luying Series, Dalian Honeydew and Russian No.8. At the same time, the quality and yield of cherries can be further improved by developing dwarf close planting by grafting dwarf rootstocks. "
Some producing areas began to develop seedlings. This year, under the recommendation of Dalian Pulandian District Committee, Dalian Guiyao Agricultural Cooperative tracked 15 new varieties and raised 150,000 seedlings. "On the one hand, raising seedlings can introduce new varieties to prepare for cherry regeneration; On the other hand, we can also cultivate new tree types and strive to achieve mechanized operations in the future. " Yu Guiyao told reporters that at the beginning, there were many varieties of cherries. Now, because Meizao tastes good and is welcomed by consumers, it is planted in one shed, but Meizao also has shortcomings, and it is easy to crack and soft. "Today, the price of the United States is not as good as before. When the price was good in the past, the lowest price was around 200 yuan/kg. Now the early price can reach two or three hundred yuan, but overall it is around 50 yuan/kg." Yu Guiyao said.
As the saying goes, cherries are delicious, but trees are hard to plant. Only scientific management can increase production and income. "In terms of water and fertilizer, more organic fertilizers such as bacterial fertilizer should be applied; In management, it is necessary to ensure the spacing between cherry trees and prune them in time; At the same time, ventilation should be ensured in the greenhouse, and the temperature difference between day and night should be controlled above 13 C to ensure the taste of cherries. " Yu Guiyao believes that fine products and high quality will always be the core competitiveness of fruits.
"In recent years, I have clearly felt that domestic cherries are becoming more and more popular. In the past, buyers came to buy, but now, the expansion of sales channels has widened the sales of cherries. Through the e-commerce platform, the cooperative has more than 1,000 kilograms of cherries every day ‘ Fly ’ Go to all parts of the country. " Yu Guiyao said.