Hainan Ledong cultivates recognition of its fruit brands

Zou Zengguang, director of Hainan Gaoming Agricultural Development Co Ltd, explains the company's insect trap technology applied in its dragon fruit industry park of Jiusuo town of Ledong county. The non-drug de-insectization method is environmentally friendly and reduces use of farm pesticides. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The bulbs hanging above the dragon fruit plants are used for supplemental lighting. The plant can adjust its growth cycle by implementing light induction, to advance its flowering period and improve flower formation, thereby increasing output. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The dragon fruits are wearing insect-proof screens to protect them from aphid damage and reduce pollution and the use of pesticides. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

"The market needs to be forward-looking, the product needs to be constantly optimized," said Zou Zengguang, director of Hainan Gaoming Agricultural Development Co. Having grown fruits for years, from bananas to papaya to today's red-heart dragon fruit, he noted standardized production, good quality control and continuous innovation are the core elements in developing a brand product.

With its dragon fruits selling well in domestic markets, including Beijing, Tianjin and Xi'an, the company has explored a development model of company + villagers + village's collective land. Villagers nearby the fruit base can either rent their land to the company or work in the plantation to earn extra income, or rent the collectively owned land to the company to earn a bonus.

"Hainan Ledong, with enough sunshine and high temperature but less rainfall, is suitable for large-scale planting of tropical fruits such as pineapples and dragon fruit," said Feng Xuejie, director of the tropical fruit tree research institute under the Hainan Academy of Agricultural Sciences. He said that supported with appropriate technical means, the essence of fruits produced in Ledong is unique. Longan, a fruit produced by the Hainan State-owned Fubao Farm, is a living example.