China's fruit sector is facing widespread oversupply, with growers and traders reporting difficulties moving volumes despite sharp price reductions. Across wholesale markets, roadside stalls, and production areas, a wide range of fruit, including cherries, mandarins, strawberries, grapes, watermelons, and oranges, remains unsold as consumer purchasing weakens.
Producers and traders report that inventories are accumulating despite repeated price cuts. Some growers say higher planted areas have translated into lower returns as market absorption has failed to keep pace with supply. One grower said, "One truckload of 66,000 jin of Gannan navel oranges isn't even worth two smartphones." Another producer outlined rising cost pressure, noting that maintaining 500 mature fruit trees costs more than RMB 30,000 per year, about US$4,200, and requires three full-time workers. "After all that," he said, "we can't even recover our production costs. We're still losing money."
Market participants indicate that the current season has delivered price levels not previously seen. "There has never been a year like this," one vendor said. Videos circulating online show stalls filled with unsold fruit, with one seller stating, "Everything is bad stock. It can't be sold. No one wants it. It's all piled up. This year's harvest is a real mess."
At wholesale markets in southern China, traders report rapid price declines. Imported cherries shipped by sea traded at around RMB 47.5 per jin, about US$6.60, in early December 2025, but had fallen to RMB 26.5 per jin, around US$3.70, by January 10, 2026, a drop of about 44 per cent. Domestic fruit prices have followed a similar pattern. Sugar mandarins are trading at roughly RMB 1.8 per jin, about US$0.25, nearly 40 per cent lower than a year earlier. Farm-gate prices for Shine Muscat grapes have fallen to as low as RMB 0.5 per jin, around US$0.07.
Retail trade conditions are also reported as weak. Vendors say even discounted offers struggle to attract buyers. One trader said fruit priced at RMB 10 for four jin failed to sell, prompting further cuts as competing stalls lowered prices. "I never imagined competition would become this brutal," he said.
The slowdown is visible during the Lunar New Year period, traditionally a peak consumption window. Traders in cities including Beijing and Shanghai report quieter markets and lower footfall. Vegetable prices have also declined, with cabbage trading at about RMB 1.2 per jin and green peppers at around RMB 5 per jin, though vendors say turnover remains limited.
Market participants say reduced household spending, job insecurity, and lower holiday consumption are contributing to softer demand. "Wherever you go, no one says business is good," one seller said. "If someone shows even a little intention to buy, you have to cling to them."
Source: Vision Times
