The first container with 18.7 tons of Sicilian blood oranges recently left Catania and, after two weeks at sea, landed in China on March 19th, 2019. The oranges were available in Hema supermarkets in Nanjing within 2 days. This is the first result of the 2017 agreement between China and Italy on orange import and export.
Xie Wenlong, responsible for international purchases in Hema, stated that domestic orange season is coming to an end, which is why the Sicilian blood oranges arrived just in time to complement market supply. The sales volume increased tenfold in the first 5 days of sales. The retail conditions were excellent last weekend. Around 89% of the users accessed the Hema-APP to purchase the popular Sicilian blood oranges.
The main varieties of blood orange in Italy include Moro, Tarocco, and Sanguinello. The first container of blood oranges from Sicily to reach China contained Tarocco blood oranges. This is the variety that customers are currently buying from Hema. The production season begins every year in December and continues until May in the subsequent year. The oranges are pre-cooled for two weeks immediately after harvest to preserve the freshness of the fruit during transport. The oranges are purchased directly from the production area, which helps to keep the price reasonable.
Source: Nanjing Daily