Wen titan
Xu Wen’s beauty is like Mona Lisa’s mysterious smile, which is now slowly being unveiled …
With the pineapple "live in hot search" and fire all over the market, Xuwen, a small county town in Guangdong, which was originally unknown, is gradually becoming famous.
According to the statistics of China Industrial Information Network in 2020, the national pineapple planting area is about 1 million mu, with an annual output of about 1.73 million tons, of which the planting area of Xuwen alone reaches 350,000 mu, with an annual output of over 700,000 tons.
The pineapple field of Xuwen Hongxing Farm. This is a state farm. /Titan photo
If the annual imports of more than 200,000 tons are counted, there are about 2 million tons of pineapples circulating in the market every year in China. The hot search of "one out of every three China pineapples comes from Xuwen" not only does not contain exaggerated elements, but even underestimates Xuwen’s level.
In contrast, the annual output of 430,000 tons of pineapples in Taiwan Province Province is less than two thirds of that in xuwen county. However, these 430,000 tons of pineapples are now banned from the mainland because of pests and diseases.
"The mainland can’t live without Taiwan Province pineapple!"
"It is not difficult for Taiwan Province to eat 18 kilograms of pineapples per person every day."
"You also have pineapples … so don’t buy Taiwan Province’s, it doesn’t matter."
The high-profile remarks of Taiwan Province’s famous mouths finally flashed step by step; Xu Wen, located at the southernmost tip of Chinese mainland, kept a low profile for too long.
Recently, the reporter of New Weekly came to Xuwen pineapple field to visit this slowly famous small county.
Once branded "Hainan Pineapple King"
Now it’s clear
If it weren’t for Taiwan Province’s "teammate’s" God’s assist ",Xu Wen’s lap might be even later.
In the early years, Xuwen pineapple was sometimes labeled as "Hainan Pineapple King" in order to sell better. This year the situation is very different.
After a day of hot search on the topic of "one out of every three China pineapples comes from Xuwen", Pinduoduo’s data shows that the search volume of "Xuwen Pineapple" has increased by 11 times year-on-year; Its daily sales also set a record, increasing by 235% compared with the same period in 2020.
Some supermarkets in Guangzhou have already labeled "Xuwen Pineapple". /Titan photo
At the same time, the recognition of the convenience of offline fruit stalls and supermarkets is also increasing, and many stores have branded "Xuwen Pineapple" to attract consumers to buy.
The fierceness of Xuwen pineapple has made many buyers find business opportunities.
Wancheng (pseudonym) from Jiangxi originally did navel orange procurement business, and this year he specially rushed to Xuwen to purchase pineapples. Beard (pseudonym) in Northeast China made a special trip to organize a motorcade, and set up a sorting station not far from the sea of pineapples, which is convenient for transferring pineapples from mining trucks to large trucks and sending them to the Northeast market.
Beard told the reporter of New Weekly that consumers in Northeast China like "big fruit", so the primary criterion for this purchase is "big head". However, 10,000% of the goods are mainly sent to the southern market, and southern consumers have high requirements for sweetness. Wancheng found that the fruit in mid-March was not sweet enough, so he turned to cross the sea and went to Hainan for a holiday. He planned to go back to Tomb-Sweeping Day to buy from Xuwen, and Xuwen’s pineapple was the sweetest before and after Qingming Festival.
A pickup truck full of pineapples is being weighed. /Titan photo
How sweet is it? Farmer Chen Bo said: "If you cut the pineapple well, the juice will keep dripping when you pick it up;" Bite it down, close your eyes and feel sweet to your heart; Open your eyes and lower your head, and find that ants are sucking the juice dripping on the ground; Through the sunshine, the flesh is still crystal clear, and the hands are sticky after eating. This is really sweet! "
In order to ensure the quality of Xuwen pineapple, many local measures have been taken in quality control.
Strict quality control can ensure the quality of production. /vision china
The government has introduced the "pineapple identity card" system, which requires farmers to register and report the pineapple planting situation in each acre of land, and conduct random checks from time to time. In this way, every acre of pineapple planting can be monitored in all directions, which can not only find diseases in time and deal with them decisively, but also stop speculation that disturbs the market order.
Some pineapple enterprises also use new technology to do quality control. The direct supply base of China pineapple e-commerce origin has customized the first automatic sorting machine for pineapple quality control in China, which is equivalent to an "X-ray" fluoroscope, and can sort pineapples according to their internal blackness, sugar content, size and weight.
Quality is brand, brand is market, Xuwen pineapple is working hard.
This year, Xuwen pineapple market demand has remained at a high level. During the Spring Festival, the field purchase price of pineapple has increased from 1 yuan per catty to 2.8 yuan to 3 yuan per catty. Some pineapple growers said that this is the highest price in 30 years.
Xuwen pineapple is doing a good job in quality control, and its product line is also constantly enriched. In addition to pineapple cake, canned pineapple and dried pineapple, there are even pineapple clothes and pineapple socks …
Pineapple is not convenient to eat?
You are OUT.
Among all kinds of products, the most worth mentioning is "peeled fruit".
What is "peeled fruit"? To understand this, we must first understand the difference between pineapple and pineapple.
Pineapple is a tropical plant. Although there is enough heat in the tropical area and rice can be cooked three times a year, the growth period of pineapple takes 18 months, that is, one and a half years, which is longer than that of sugarcane.
Pineapples need to be peeled before use. /tuchong creativity
During the long growth and evolution of pineapple, due to the differences and changes of natural geographical environment in different places, many varieties have been gradually derived, such as Bali and Golden Pineapple. Pineapple is also one of the subspecies, which is divided into many sub-varieties, such as watermelon pineapple and mango pineapple.
Compared with other pineapple varieties, the biggest advantage of pineapple is that it has shallow eyes and can be eaten after peeling.
Therefore, in the minds of consumers, it seems that pineapple represents high-end, while other pineapple varieties are too rough and inconvenient to eat. Unless you have a professional knife and master the skill of cutting pineapple into threads, eating pineapple once is simply too much trouble and pricks your hand.
Xuwen’s dominant variety is not pineapple, but Bali. If such market recognition persists, it will inevitably have an impact on sales. After many market surveys, Xuwen’s pineapple enterprises decided to learn from Thailand-pushing for "peeling fruit".
Workers are peeling pineapples. /Titan photo
"Peeled fruit" is simply a peeled pineapple. Although it is just such a simple step, it can produce a "butterfly effect".
First of all, peeled pineapples are easier to keep fresh in cold storage than peeled pineapples, which is not only convenient for storage, but also conducive to adjusting the sales rhythm, and also has the opportunity to sell to more distant areas.
In the past, when there was a cold wave in the north, road accessibility would be affected by snow and ice, and consumers would also reduce their spending outside, so pineapples might be unsalable. With peeled fruits, when there is a cold wave in the north, pineapples can be temporarily stored without spoilage, and then sold after the cold wave, thus maximizing benefits.
Secondly, peeled pineapples can enter supermarkets and restaurants with higher added value.
Many high-end Thai restaurants have a classic dish: pineapple fried rice. /vision china
Most importantly, peeling solves the big problem of "pineapple is not convenient to eat" and makes consumers accept it more.
Chen Bei, vice chairman of xuwen county CPPCC, told the reporter of New Weekly that in the next stage, Xu Wen will push for peeling fruit, and in addition, he will vigorously package the product "Small Pineapple", because the small pineapple with handle has higher ornamental value, and it will be sold to high-end restaurants for setting dishes with high style.
Small pineapples are not stunted pineapples, but pineapples left over from the last round of picking due to leaf coverage. These pineapples didn’t receive enough light in the early stage, so they were small. However, after the "big fruit" was picked, the small pineapples could enjoy the rain and dew, light and fertilizer alone, so they grew well in the later stage, and the sweetness was even higher than that of the "big fruit".
A small pineapple thrives. /Titan photo
While improving the category of pineapple products, Xu Wen is constantly incubating the industry IP, among which the most mature operation is "Pineapple Sister".
"Pineapple Sister" Wu Jianlian is the president of xuwen county Pineapple Association. As early as 2008, she invested and built a pineapple food processing factory. During these ten years, she carried forward Xu Wenren’s prudent and enterprising spirit, decided the investment scale according to the profit level, and gradually expanded the product line.
Wu Jianlian told the reporter of New Weekly: "Look at my factory, it is not as uniform as some big factories, because it is expanded bit by bit. Every factory is like a footprint. "
Nowadays, Wu Jianlian not only owns many production lines such as canned pineapple, dried pineapple and pineapple cake, but also develops new products such as pineapple clothes. The name of "Pineapple Sister" is getting louder and louder, becoming an industry IP.
Canned pineapple not only retains the sweetness of pineapple, but also prolongs the preservation time. /tuchong creativity
Timing and location
Xuwen can form a complete pineapple product line, which is inseparable from the local weather and location.
The southernmost tip of China is Zengmu shoal, which is a necessary knowledge in junior high school geography.
The southernmost tip of Chinese mainland-xuwen county, Zhanjiang City, Guangdong Province, is less famous by comparison.
Xuwen is the nearest county between the mainland and Hainan Island. If you are in Xuwen, it seems that you can reach Haikou by reaching out. /Baidu map screenshot
More than 2 million years ago, the large-scale volcanic eruption here, accompanied by lightning and heavy rain, reshaped the local topography.
At that time, Xu Wenshang was still connected with Hainan. Until 120,000 years ago, a major earthquake caused the earth’s crust to break, and today’s "natural moat"-Qiongzhou Strait was formed. At this time, the underground energy was released, and the earth was finally calm.
The volcanic activity that lasted for millions of years not only brought fertile latosol here, but also formed a vast platform with gentle ups and downs.
Xuwen’s red land has gentle topography. /tuchong creativity
In terms of climate, Xuwen is located in the south of the Tropic of Cancer and in the tropics. Even in the case of a cold wave heading south, the minimum temperature is above 10℃. Every summer and autumn, the humid southwest monsoon brings abundant water vapor from the South China Sea, so that Xuwen can fully enjoy the moisture of rain and dew.
Due to the gentle undulating platform topography, high in the middle and low in the periphery, and convenient drainage, Xuwen is rich in precipitation-the annual precipitation is more than 1000 mm, but it is rarely disturbed by floods.
Pineapple is native to the Amazon River basin of Brazil and Paraguay in South America, which is located in the tropics with abundant rain and heat. Xuwen has abundant precipitation, fertile soil, sufficient light and heat and convenient drainage, and its geographical environment is very similar to that of South America.
On August 25th, 2005, the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine approved the protection of geographical indication products for "Yugonglou Pineapple". /tuchong creativity
In 1926, returned overseas Chinese Ni Guoliang introduced pineapple to Yugonglou Village, Qujiae Town, xuwen county, becoming the "first person to plant pineapple in Guangdong". At that time, people planted a variety called "high hemp", mainly to extract leaf fiber for textile. High hemp fruit is small, with deep eyes, hard meat and much dregs, which is inconvenient to eat, so the planting range has been very limited.
In 1930, "Bali" was introduced to Xuwen from Singapore. Because Bali fruit is big, tender and juicy, it is very suitable for Xuwen’s climate and soon becomes a local dominant variety. By 1985, the planting area in Bali had reached more than 80% of the pineapple planting area in Xuwen County. Until today, Bali is still the main variety of Xuwen pineapple.
During the Republic of China, the planting area of Xuwen pineapple never exceeded 10,000 mu until 1952. In the 1960s, the whole country called for "taking grain as the key link", and the planting area of Xuwen pineapple was once reduced to more than 4,000 mu. After the reform and opening up, the rise of canned pineapple processing industry has made the northern market see the delicious pineapple, and the planting scale has expanded year by year.
Search for "canned pineapple" on Taobao, and the second keyword is "Xuwen". /Taobao screenshot
While the planting area has made great strides, Xuwen farmers have also continuously improved their planting techniques, and extensive management has gradually become intensive. By 1988, the total area of pineapple planting in Xuwen had reached more than 100,000 mu, and the total output had exceeded 100,000 tons.
In 1997, Li Yining, a famous economist, came to Xuwen and saw this boundless pineapple field. The word "pineapple sea" blurted out from his mouth, which formed a homonym with the European "Baltic Sea", which was very interesting.
Xu Wen, who overlooks the field of vision, is indeed well-deserved as "the sea of pineapples". /vision china
Since then, the sea of pineapples has become a business card of Xu Wen.
The most important thing is "harmony between people"
This "sea" has attracted many people to join in and write new stories.
Zhan Zhao (pseudonym) is one of them. Before planting pineapple, he was engaged in biopharmaceutical industry.
Zhan Zhao recalled to the reporter of New Weekly that six years ago, under the introduction of Taiwanese businessmen, he rented land in Hainan and invested in planting hundreds of acres of pineapples. At first, the pineapples planted were attacked by diseases. In the case of fruitless help from Taiwanese businessmen, Zhan Zhao gave full play to the research spirit of the old biopharmaceutical industry and personally marked the problems of pineapples one by one, thus solving the disease.
Overlooking the pineapple sea from high altitude, it is colorful and magnificent. /tuchong creativity
After solving the disease, Zhan Zhao has become a rare "pineapple king" who achieved profit after putting into production for more than one year.
After gaining a firm foothold in Hainan, Zhan Zhao once visited Xuwen, and found that "this sea of pineapples is really amazing, as big as five Macau", and the pineapple-related industrial chain is also very perfect, such as seedling raising, fertilizer, pest control, laundry list, picking team, logistics and other peripheral links are quite sound, so Zhan Zhao immediately decided to move to Xuwen.
Zhan Zhao introduced two varieties, watermelon pineapple and mango pineapple, to Xuwen, and tried to plant new varieties, such as peach pineapple, and bought sheep manure and cake fertilizer for fine fertilization. The average pineapple produced can reach 5 kg each, twice the size of Bali.
In order to enter the high-end market, Zhan Zhao also designed a new pineapple package.
New packaging designed by Zhan Zhao. /Respondents for the picture
Xuwen is a hot land, which attracts many people and makes this sea colorful and attractive. Some of them pay, such as Zhan Zhao; Some contribute, such as the "labor team."
Labor teams are teams responsible for picking fruits. These teams are generally led by local farmers, and most of them are from other provinces, from Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi and other places.
Why do you need a professional team to pick pineapples? This is because pineapple leaves and fruits have thorns. If you pick them carelessly, you will cut your hands, and your pants and shoes will be scratched. Professional fruit pickers in labor teams will wear gloves and straw hats, and leg protectors will be tied on their legs. Shoes are all special rubber shoes.
Among them, there are men and women. They can pick a pineapple in the fastest two seconds, and then they will carry baskets of pineapples on the truck.
A woman in the labor team is picking pineapples. /Titan photo
After the labor team fills a car, it is transferred to the big truck.
They start picking at 6 o’clock every morning. Generally, by 2 o’clock in the afternoon, a team of more than 10 people can fill a car with 50,000 kilograms of pineapples. According to the freight rate of 10 cents per catty, a team can earn 5,000 yuan per car, and each person can earn more than 300 yuan a day on average. In the peak season of pineapple production, it is not a problem to earn more than 10 thousand yuan a month.
Whether it is a labor force or a laundry list, whether it is the purchase price or the market terminal price, Xu Wen has established a comprehensive big data system.
From 2019 to 2020, the direct supply base of China pineapple e-commerce origin developed and improved Xuwen pineapple big data system, covering 15,713 farmers’ data, 10,576 national fruit market stalls’ data and 4,486 fruit e-commerce data of the whole network.
Pineapple big data is very detailed. /Titan photo
With these solid industrial foundations, this wave of Xuwen pineapple will never be a flash in the pan, but will have a lasting and far-reaching impact on our taste buds and dining tables.
Xuwen pineapple is based on these, and it is far more than these.