E-commerce a boon for orange growers
2023-03-07 20:03:08
By Shen Yuan, Yichang International Communication Studio
In Zigui County, Yichang, oranges are in short supply. The sector, which employs more than 60,000 people, is now generating annual sales of more than 3 billion yuan (US$432.3 million) with online sales booming.
Yichang is one of China’s biggest orange-producing areas and one of the best suited to cultivating the fruit. Almost any variety of orange can be grown in the area.
Zigui County’s 400,000 mu (26.667 hectares) of orchards produce 800,000 tons of oranges every year. There are about 200,000 orange farmers spread across 12 townships and the total output value exceeds 10 billion yuan.
"Thanks to e-commerce, orders started arriving before the oranges were ripe," said Kong Xiangcheng, Party Secretary of Zhoujiawan village in Zigui County. He said it is harvest season for more than 1,500 mu of oranges, with an estimated output of 3 million kilograms.
Xinyongtai Agricultural Development is one of the 214 e-commerce companies in Huawei Electric Logistics Park. In the loading area, boxes of oranges are waiting to be transported across China.
"Our premium oranges are sold by unit. The price of one orange is more than 8 yuan, and they are very popular," said Yan Yong, the head of the company. Last year, Xinyongtai sold more than 2 million yuan worth of oranges.
In Zigui County, 30 percent of the oranges are sold through local e-commerce companies. Sixty-five major e-commerce companies have signed long-term deals with farmers or farmers' professional cooperatives. The logistics park is a hive of activity. Every day 50 trucks and 300 tons of fresh oranges are sent all over the country.
Photo by: Nie Shuang
In Zigui County, Yichang, oranges are in short supply. The sector, which employs more than 60,000 people, is now generating annual sales of more than 3 billion yuan (US$432.3 million) with online sales booming.
Yichang is one of China’s biggest orange-producing areas and one of the best suited to cultivating the fruit. Almost any variety of orange can be grown in the area.
Zigui County’s 400,000 mu (26.667 hectares) of orchards produce 800,000 tons of oranges every year. There are about 200,000 orange farmers spread across 12 townships and the total output value exceeds 10 billion yuan.
"Thanks to e-commerce, orders started arriving before the oranges were ripe," said Kong Xiangcheng, Party Secretary of Zhoujiawan village in Zigui County. He said it is harvest season for more than 1,500 mu of oranges, with an estimated output of 3 million kilograms.
Xinyongtai Agricultural Development is one of the 214 e-commerce companies in Huawei Electric Logistics Park. In the loading area, boxes of oranges are waiting to be transported across China.
"Our premium oranges are sold by unit. The price of one orange is more than 8 yuan, and they are very popular," said Yan Yong, the head of the company. Last year, Xinyongtai sold more than 2 million yuan worth of oranges.
In Zigui County, 30 percent of the oranges are sold through local e-commerce companies. Sixty-five major e-commerce companies have signed long-term deals with farmers or farmers' professional cooperatives. The logistics park is a hive of activity. Every day 50 trucks and 300 tons of fresh oranges are sent all over the country.
Photo by: Nie Shuang
