City in China's Guangdong develops pomelo industry to boost rural revitalization

Meizhou city in south China's Guangdong Province has vigorously developed its pomelo industry and raised the level of commercialization of the sector in recent years, helping farmers increase their incomes while enhancing the brand influence of the fruit.

Photo taken in early September shows a pomelo orchard in Meixian district, Meizhou city, south China's Guangdong Province. (Photo/Zhong Xiaofeng)

As the largest pomelo producer in Guangdong, the city planted 650,000 mu, or 43,333 hectares of pomelos, and its annual production of the fruit accounted for 90 percent of the province's total and a fifth of the country's total.

Meixian district is the major production area of pomelos in the city. Known for its pomelos, Dahuang village in Songkou township, Meixian district, has made pomelos a pillar industry, with the sector's output value accounting for more than 98 percent of that of all cash crops in the village.

For a long time, the fruit didn't bring much wealth to pomelo growers in Dahuang village because they had little bargaining power, according to Liao Jianming, Party chief of the village.

In 2015, Liao, who had been a businessman for 10 years in Shenzhen, worked together with some pomelo growers in the village and established a company to sell the village's pomelos to large wholesale markets across the country.

Zheng Caixia, a pomelo grower, smiles while picking pomelos in Dabu county, Meizhou city, south China's Guangdong Province. (Photo/Lian Zhicheng)

Later, Dahuang village embraced more development opportunities, as Meixian district promoted the development of locally-featured industries and established several modern agricultural industrial parks. In 2018, a provincial-level modern industrial park covering an area of 300 mu was established in the village, drawing in 28 cooperatives.

These days, the pomelo sector has become a cash cow in Dahuang village. So far, over 200 households have joined cooperatives in the village, and the per capita annual income of villagers has reached 28,000 yuan (about $3,874.30).

"I work for the industrial park and get a salary. In addition, I earn money by selling my family's pomelos," said villager Zhang Xinhua, who is satisfied with her current living conditions as she can work near home while taking care of her children and her family's pomelo orchard.

By taking advantage of its profound history and sound ecology, Dahuang village has improved its living environment in recent years, creating a brand new look. As a result, rural tourism has thrived in the village, making it a "must-go" destination for visitors.

At the same time, pomelos from Jianxin village, Shishan township, Meixian district have been exported to countries and regions including Australia and Europe, thanks to the efforts of the local government and a local company.

Employees of a local company advertise pomelos during a live-streaming session in Meizhou city, south China's Guangdong Province. (Photo/Lian Zhicheng)

Villager Lin Lyu established Meizhou Xingyuan Agricultural Development Co., Ltd. in 2015 after graduating from college. Today, it has become a leading agricultural company that engages in the planting, production, processing and sales of pomelos.

By leveraging e-commerce platforms, Lin's company sells 3 million to 3.5 million kilograms of pomelos a year, helping 2,750 local peasant households increase their incomes.

Lin attributed his company's success to the local government's strong support through policies, training and marketing, as well as the brand influence of Meizhou's pomelos.

Over the past few years, Meizhou has made every effort to boost the strength of its pomelo industry. In 2021, Meizhou issued an implementation plan to accelerate the building of a pomelo industrial belt in the city, calling for efforts to further expand the planting area of the fruit, improve its quality, extend the industrial chain of the sector, and enhance the brand building. According to the plan, the planting area of pomelos in the city will reach 1 million mu by the end of 2025, with an annual output of over 1 million tonnes and an annual output value of 10 billion yuan.

"Under the guidance of the local government, high quality has become a consensus among pomelo growers. Consequently, the quality of pomelos in Meixian district is improving and so is the fruit's brand influence," Lin said.

Employees of a local company sort pomelos in Meizhou city, south China's Guangdong Province. (Photo/Zhong Xiaofeng)

Meixian district has developed smart agriculture with the application of various technologies and devices, such as an intelligent water and fertilizer integrated drip irrigation system, a platform based on the Internet of Things that monitors the growth of pomelos, and a blockchain-powered traceability system, which has greatly improved the level of standardization of pomelo production and the quality of the fruit.

At the same time, Meizhou has taken measures to increase the added value of pomelos. Guangdong Lijinyou Agricultural Science and Technology Co. Ltd., a leading company in the pomelo industry in Meixian district, launched a project to extract high-purity naringin from pomelos last year. The project, which was put into operation this year, is expected to produce 1,000 tonnes of high-purity naringin each year, with an annual output value of about 250 million yuan.

"We are cooperating with the Citrus Research Institute under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in the processing and production of naringin-related products," said Li Yongsheng, general manager of the company.

Li explained that naringin has seen a huge increase in demand in recent years because it enjoys huge potential and can be applied in a wide range of fields, including being used to produce sweetening agents, pharmaceuticals, and daily chemical products. "After the implementation of the project, the added value of one pomelo increases 30 times," Li said.