"China: "Year round supply of watermelons will increase our market share"

"In the last few years there have been quite significant fluctuations on the watermelon market. In the period between 2015 and 2016 the production volume of watermelons has increased year after year and the variety has increased as well. This development is now at its height and the watermelons of several production areas enter the market at the same time. This has caused depression in the market and the price has dropped again and again. Watermelon farmers suffered severe losses." This is according to Mr. Fan Shumin of Weifang City Di Li Ren He Specialized Fruit and Vegetable Industry Alliance, who spoke to an interviewer from Fresh Plaza B.V.

"In March and April of 2017 there was a serious shortage because the watermelon production volume suffered from weather conditions and several man-made conditions which led to a shortage. The limited production volume directly influenced the price of watermelons which showed a sudden increase.

Unicorn watermelon increased from around 1.5 yuan [0.24 USD] per 0.5 kg to around 4 yuan [0.63 USD] per 0.5 kg. The watermelons of Weifang City in Shandong officially entered the market in the beginning of May. From the beginning of the production season the price of watermelon has fallen from 3 yuan [0.47 USD] per 0.5 kg at the time when the watermelon production volume entered the market to around 1.5 yuan [0.24 USD] per 0.5 kg in the middle of May. It is our understanding that the price is predominantly determined by the various time frames in which watermelons of different production areas mature. When different production volumes are gathered in the market then the price will certainly fall as a result of increased supply."

The watermelons collected by Mr. Fan Shumin and his team in production areas throughout the country are the medium to early maturing "Xindi Sweet Taste" Sweet King watermelons, with a high sugar content, a high resistance to splitting, and a great resistance to high temperatures. This variety is well-suited to high-yield production as well as long-distance transport. 

When the Sweet King variety was first brought to the market, there were watermelon farmers who had their doubts about the quality of Xindi Sweet Taste watermelons. Northern watermelon farmers in particular were doubtful. However, after the excellent market response in 2015 and 2016, the northern watermelon farmers have started to plant this variety since the start of 2017. They have also started to expand the surface area devoted to the plantation of this variety. According to estimates, the market supply of Xindi Sweet Taste will continue to grow without interruption.

"We possess watermelon plantations under our own management and under joint management in Laos, Myanmar, Shandong, and Jilin. We considered the following reasons when we decided to establish watermelon plantations in Laos and Myanmar: first, labor cost and land rent. These costs are lower in Laos and Myanmar, which helps to keep the overall cost price low. Second, the weather conditions in Laos and Myanmar are more suitable to watermelon production than the conditions in China. This helps the watermelon mature. Third, the harvest season of watermelon in Laos and Myanmar complements the domestic harvest seasons of "Xindi Sweet Taste" Sweet King watermelon, which means that there will be no gap in the year-round supply."

"As far as the year-round distribution of watermelon is concerned, the plantations of Sweet King watermelon in Laos and Myanmar produced watermelon that entered the market around 15 days prior to the Spring Festival, and their supply will continue until around April.

Following the supply from Laos and Myanmar is the Unicorn watermelon from Yunnan which enters the market in early March to early April. Afterwards, the Sweet King watermelon from Weifang City in Shandong enters the market from April 20th until early June. The Sweet King watermelon from Hebei and Liaoning enter the market in July, while watermelon from Jilin and Heilongjiang enter the market from August to October. The last to enter the market, from the middle of October to the middle of November, are the Sweet King watermelon and the seedless watermelon from Liaoning and the off-season in Shandong. The staggered production seasons of watermelon mean that we can supply watermelon to fresh chain supermarkets and wholesale supermarkets throughout the year without interruption."

"The natural capacity of seeds decides the quality of watermelon products, as it does for most agricultural products. We have established a long-term cooperation with large-scale seed research and development centers. For every watermelon variety that is developed we can first experiment in a trial field to see if the seeds produce the desired quality of watermelon. Only after we are satisfied with the produced watermelon do we officially enter it on the market. In this current stage, we predominantly connect with domestic watermelon farmers. We sell our products to wholesale markets and fresh supermarkets. We are also seeking new strategic cooperation partners to improve the distribution of our watermelons to the market."