Philippines: Money grows on watermelons

The melon family – watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew - are major crops in Taiwan. That’s because the farmers have discovered them to be usually more profitable to grow than many other crops. For one, the yield is high when the proper seeds and technology are employed. They don’t take a long time to grow. The fruits are well liked by consumers and so the market is big. In the past many years, thousands of cultivars have been developed by plant breeders, especially those of Known-You Seed Company, Taiwan’s biggest seed firm specializing in the melon group, pepper, tomato, eggplant, cucurbits, crucifers, papaya, sweet corn and several others. It could be said that Known-You has been largely responsible for the popularity of melons and watermelons today. Starting as small seed store in 1968 in Fengshan, Kaohsiung, it has grown into a giant company, thanks to the dedication of its founder Wun-Yu Chen who at 86 still goes to his office and visits the company’s experimental farms regularly. He has, however, delegated much of the administrative work to his son, Lung-Mu Chen, who is also a plant breeder.

Source: mb.com.ph