The loquat is a popular fruit in the Chinese market. The loquat currently available in the Chinese market mainly come from Panzhihua in Sichuan, Mengzi in Yunnan, and Yunxiao in Zhangzhou, Fujian.
April of Lurra (Sichuan) Trade Co., Ltd. recently shared insight in the Chinese loquat market: "We established close business relations with an even greater number of loquat traders this year. We also expanded the scale of plantation and sales. We expect our sales volume to increase to 180 tons this year, which would be double the sales volume of last year. Our loquat come from Miyi county in Panzhihua, Sichuan. The loquat production season in Miyi begins every year in November and continues until May in the subsequent year, provided that the weather conditions are regular. In the end, the overall production volume increased this year, but the production volume per hectare declined somewhat. The main reason for this development is a drop in temperatures in early January. Many of the loquats died off in the winter because of extremely low temperatures."
When asked about the product quality this year, April replied: "The loquat are relatively small because there was no rain during the growth season. The drought limited the growth but the flavor and sugar content is quite good. The loquat market is very active this year and production volumes in Fujian were quite large, so the price is relatively low. That is difficult to compete with, because the average price of loquat from Sichuan is a bit higher. The price of Sichuan loquat is around 20 yuan [2.82 USD] per 0.5 kg, while the price of Fujian loquat is only around 6-8 yuan [0.85-1.13 USD] per 0.5 kg. Although competition is hard, we are still trying to open up new sales channels in Beijing and Shanghai."
"We will open up our own loquat processing factory in Miyi county, now that we have established close relations with our business partners. We hope to improve the efficiency of our operations with our own processing factory. We can speed up the processing activities and reduce the cost price. This improves the overall production process as well as the product quality of our loquat. The processing factory with have a fully automated production line. We sell our loquat under our own brand 'Lurra'. Furthermore, we package our own lfruit. This is one of the key elements for success in the Chinese fruit market. A good brand in a good-looking package sells well."
New export markets
"We hope to import a larger variety of top-quality products from overseas this year. We are currently researching and developing a new variety of New Zealand apple. These apples perform very well in the Chinese market. There is a great market potential there. In addition, Australian grapes show an equally promising market potential. We hope to find new business partners and establish close cooperation. Our goal is to provide the Chinese market with an even greater variety of top-quality fruit."
For more information:
April
Lurra (Shenzhen) Trading Co., Ltd.
Tel.: +86 182 7146 6451
E-mail: april@lurra.com.cn
Website: www.lurra.com.cn