Kiwi berries are a small berry in terms of production volume, but they are rich in nutrients, sweet, fragrant, and juicy. The nutritious kiwi berries contain vitamins and many kinds of trace minerals. They are popular with the elderly and young children. There are early- mid- and late-season kiwi berry varieties, which are available in the market for about 2.5 months.
Shanghai Nongfu Fruit Co., Ltd. has a Disney product range, which includes kiwi berries. Ms. Kelly Wang of Nongfu Fruit, and Ms. Yu Wenxin from the company's kiwi berry orchard, recently talked about current conditions in the kiwi berry industry. Kiwi berry production areas are distributed throughout China, but the Disney kiwi berries mainly come from Dandong in Liaoning.
"Kiwi berries from Dandong generally ripen and enter the market in late August. That is when the flavor of these kiwi berries is at its best. However, some farmers harvest early and supply the market in early August to obtain higher prices, and because they worry about transport delays during the pandemic. The flavor of these kiwi berries is below average and clients rarely return to buy them again," explained Ms. Yu Wenxin.
"Our company collaborates with the Disney brand, so we strictly control the product quality of our kiwi berries. We only begin to harvest in late August. In addition, the kiwi berries suffered from frequent rainfall in July just when the berries swell. This makes it more difficult to store the kiwi berries this year, as they more easily spoil and the flavor deteriorates. We left the kiwi berries on the vine a little longer than usual to make sure the product quality and flavor are up to standard."
"The kiwi berry industry is developing. The retail price is good, but the production volume in north China declined this year. There are several reasons for this development. First, unexpected cold currents in spring negatively affected the kiwi berry blossoms in May. In addition, beekeepers who normally come to pollinate the kiwi berries in May and June had difficulty travelling during the pandemic. That is why some orchards were not sufficiently pollinated. The production volume declined as a result."
There are two main problems in the kiwi berry industry: too few consumers are familiar with kiwi berries, and the shelf life of the berries is too short. Ms. Yu makes use of Douyin, Kuaishou, and other video-sharing apps to familiarize a wider audience with kiwi berries and promote sales.
One solution for the problem of a short shelf life is to develop a range of processed kiwi berry products, in addition to fresh kiwi berries, such as kiwi berry wine, dried kiwi berries, and kiwi berry salads. Kiwi berries are also relevant for beverage shops.
The Disney brand also gives kiwi berries more visibility in the market. "The sales volume of kiwi berries significantly expanded since the collaboration with Disney. The kiwi berries sold under this brand are of the highest product quality, which helps to grow the sales volume and secure more return customers. We have organic certification for our kiwi berries and we hope make Disney kiwi berries the product standard for the kiwi berry industry." Disney kiwi berries are sold in packages of 12 large berries or 15 medium berries.
Nongfu Fruit is the only company in mainland China authorized to use the Disney brand for fruit products. The company sells fresh fruit, dried fruit, and frozen fruit under the Disney brand with cartoon figures on the packaging. The Disney brand is applied to a wide variety of fruits, including outstanding seasonal fruits, to guarantee year-round supply. Nongfu is currently focused on the market in mainland China and is always looking for suitable partners who can act as regional agents for the retail of Disney fruit products.
For more information:
Ms. Kelly Wang
Shanghai Nongfu Fruit Co., Ltd.
Tel.: +86 131 2781 6028
E-mail: Kelly@nowfrutti.com
Website: www.nowfrutti.com