"China: "Markets for open-field and greenhouse watermelons diverge"

"The watermelon production season is coming to an end in all watermelon production areas throughout China. The watermelon production season in Yuncheng, Shanxi, began on May 10th. Looking at the overall market conditions, there is a growing difference between open-field watermelons and greenhouse watermelons. The market conditions of greenhouse watermelons are, comparatively speaking, much better than the market conditions of open-field watermelons." This is according to Mr. Tian of China Shanxi Xia County Xiale Agricultural Science and Technology Services Co., Ltd.

"The watermelon market conditions last year were relatively good. Many farmers expanded their watermelon farms because of the prospect of profit. This caused an increase of surface area devoted to watermelon plantation, and it caused an increase of production volume. This year in June, while many major production areas brought their watermelons to the market at the same time, south China suffered from heavy rainfall that brought chaos to the watermelon market for more than 10 days. Afterwards, in July, north China suffered from overcast and rainy weather that has not been seen in many years. The quality of open-field watermelons therefore decreased. This further depressed the watermelon market conditions. On the other hand, however, greenhouse watermelons barely noticed the extreme weather and sales went well."

"The price of open-field watermelons is currently on the low side in the comparison with the same period in the previous year. The main reason for this development is excessive rainfall, which influenced the product quality of open-field watermelons. The price of greenhouse watermelons is stable in comparison with the same period in the previous year. As for our sales conditions, we are still doing slightly better than last year. The main reason for this development is that we spent much effort over a long period of time on brand construction. Our brand "Xiale" has a stable base in the industry and a stable group of customers."

"Our company is located in Yuncheng, Shanxi. Our watermelon greenhouses cover 367 hectares, which is 150% more than the 147 hectares of last year. Our main watermelon varieties are Zaojia (8424) and Meidu. These watermelons have a beautiful flavor and receive a warm welcome on the market. This year we sold 40% of the watermelon production volume of Xia County Hongwei Specialized Melon Cooperation under our own brand "Xiale" in local markets, while we sold 60% under our own brand "Xiale" in such first- and second tier cities as Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Changsha, Guiyang, Zhengzhou, Taiyuan and Huhhot, through large scale traders like Pagoda, Green Leaf, and Yonghui Supermarkets.