Get the Sweetest Waxberry in Zhejiang Province

The waxberry, also known as Yangmei in Chinese, is now in its harvest season. Do you know where you can get the sweetest waxberry in Zhejiang Province? The answer is Yueqing and Jinyun.

A waxberry competition was held in Lanxi City to find out the sweetest waxberry in the province on June 23rd. A total of 15 teams representing all major waxberry farms in the province participated in the competition.

Sweetness

is the appraisal criterion

It is the first time for Zhejiang Province to have a waxberry competition, which was divided into two categories in accordance with its two varieties, locally named as Boqi and Dongkui. The appraisal criterion is simple as well. The weight of a single fruit of the Boqi waxberry should be no less than 10g, while for the Dongkui waxberry, no less than 25g. 25 pieces of waxberry of the two varieties were randomly sampled and squashed to juices on the site. The sweetness of each sample was tested and measured by a digital device imported from Japan.

The result showed that the sugar content of the waxberry grown by Yueqing Hongda Fruits Growing Cooperation Farm is as high as 11.6%, which led its way to the championship among the Boqi waxberry. Meanwhile, the sugar content of the waxberry grown by Jinyun Ren'an Waxberry Cooperation Farm reaches 12.4%, as a result, it stood out among the Dongkui waxberry.

One of the judges of the competition, senior agriculturist Mr. Huang Xianguo commented that generally the sugar content of the waxberry is around 10%-11%, however, as there were heavy rainfalls in the last few months, it is not bad result for the winners to achieve above this level.

The competition

is the best advertisement

The two winners of the waxberry competition will apply for a record in The Best of Zhejiang Agriculture and they will be awarded 5,000 yuan respectively.

The Provincial Agriculture Bureau noted that the title of The Best of Zhejiang Agriculture is not eternal, that is, it can be replaced by the waxberry grown in other farms so long as they break the record in the future.

“It is the best advertisement for us to be titled as one of the Best of Zhejiang Agriculture.” remarked Mr. Yang Shanping, director of Yueqing Hongda Fruits Growing Cooperation Farm, unable to hide his pleasure at the result. He is going to put this honored title on all the waxberries harvested in his farm. “I believe they can be sold at a good price.”

The reduction in harvest

doesn't affect the revenue

The waxberry is the second largest fruit cultivation in Zhejiang Province. It is the peak season for the local waxberry to harvest from the end of June to the beginning of July.

Statistics from the Provincial Agriculture Bureau shows that total growing area of the waxberry in Zhejiang Province is around 185,000 acres. Many blossoms were destroyed before the fruit came into being due to the frosty weather this Spring. Some waxberry trees in high mountains were even frozen and perished. The estimated total harvest in the province is about 340,000 ton, 5%-6% less compared with last year. In the three major waxberry growing regions, the production was reduced by 9% in Taizhou, 22% in Wenzhou, but was increased by 23% in Ningbo.

The low temperature in spring also postponed the maturing time of the waxberry. The peak pick-up time for the Boqi waxberry in Ningbo falls on June 18th -28th, about 7 days later compared with last year. On the other hand, in Wenzhou, the waxberry wasn’t ready for pick up until June 6th, about 10 days later than the previous year. It was deferred for about 7 days in general in Taizhou.

It is estimated that the price of the waxberry this year will be increased by 10%, so the reduction of the harvest may not affect the revenue. For those of premium quality, the sales will be especially better than last year.

Source: City express