White lotus becomes thriving industry in Guangchang, E China's Jiangxi

Farmers harvest white lotus seedpods in Zhangshu village, Ganzhu township, Guangchang county, Fuzhou, east China's Jiangxi Province. (Photo/Zeng Henggui)

Guangchang county in Fuzhou city, east China's Jiangxi Province, boasts a rich history of white lotus cultivation spanning over 1,300 years. It has emerged as the largest hub in the country for white lotus scientific research, production, distribution, and price formation.

In the county's white lotus industrial development center, Zheng Xingwen, a senior agronomist, leads a research team in conducting white lotus breeding experiments.

The research team started to conduct space-induced mutation breeding research on the white lotus in the 1990s. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of the researchers, the development center has successfully cultivated space-bred lotus varieties.

"The latest generation of space-bred lotus has achieved a 10 percent increase in yield compared to previous varieties. It boasts large grains, excellent quality, good disease resistance, and strong adaptability. This variety is currently being widely promoted and applied," said Zheng.

To further enhance the white lotus industry, Guangchang county has established collaborations with 11 domestic academic and research institutions.

Today, Guangchang county maintains a stable white lotus planting area of around 110,000 mu (about 7,333 hectares), with an annual yield of 9,000 tonnes of lotus seeds, valued at 830 million yuan (about $116 million).

Beyond improving the yield of white lotus, the county has also looked to increase value through improved processing methods.

In early August, Guangchang county's white lotus harvest season began. Like the past, workers went around hand picking the pods. From there though, the process has been modernized.

Workers process and pack frozen lotus products at a factory in Guangchang county, Fuzhou city, east China's Jiangxi Province. (Photo/Zeng Henggui)

Before, the harvesters would go door to door selling the lotus ponds and seeds. Now, they can happily deliver the fresh lotus pods directly to nearby mechanized processing points.

"In the past, processing lotus seeds required a lot of manual labor and was costly. Now, with the processing factory, we can send the daily harvest to be processed and receive high-quality lotus seeds in just a few hours. It's convenient and affordable," said Xie Wenliang, a lotus grower from Changqiao township of the county.

Currently, there are 10 white lotus processing centers in Guangchang that provide comprehensive services such as peeling, shell removal, core removal, roasting, and sales for growers. This has significantly increased the collective income of each village by more than 200,000 yuan.

Guangchang county has set up one white lotus production demonstration base in every township. By introducing a mechanism that combines leading enterprises, cooperatives, and farmers, the county has developed over 30,000 mu of white lotus cultivation bases. As a result, more than 12,000 households in the county have seen their income rise by an average of over 3,000 yuan.

The county has also looked to improve the white lotus industry through expanding the value chain, including the growth of fruit lotus picking.

Liang Ning, chairman of an agricultural product company in Guangchang county, is one of the leaders in fruit lotus production.

"After I returned to my hometown to start a business, I boldly ventured into the field of fruit lotus. With efficient logistics, these freshly picked fruit lotus can reach major supermarkets nationwide within just 24 hours," explained Liang.

According to Liang, in 2023, the company sold 80,000 kilograms of fruit lotus, generating sales revenue of over 2 million yuan.

To broaden sales channels, Guangchang county actively supports local businesses in establishing partnerships with large supermarkets. It has embraced new business models such as live-streaming sales and online group buying, revolutionizing the way agricultural products are distributed.

In an effort to enhance brand recognition and accelerate the integration of different industries, Guangchang has leveraged the ecological advantages of lotus flowers.

It has organized the Guangchang Lotus Tourism and Cultural Festival for 19 consecutive years, and introduced travel routes themed on lotus.

In 2023, the county welcomed a total of 4.38 million tourist visits, raking in a comprehensive tourism revenue of 2.91 billion yuan.