A Harvest Success Story in the Apple Orchards

In golden September, the sky is clear and high over the Loess Plateau. Driving through the rural roads of Jingchuan County, continuous apple orchards come into view. Red apples weigh down the branches, gleaming with enticing luster in the sunlight, while the air is filled with a light fragrance of fruit. In the fields, fruit farmers are busy picking, sorting, and packing, their faces glowing with the joy of harvest.

At seven o'clock in the morning, the orchards in Tiefo Village, Gaoping Town, are already bustling with activity. Farmers take advantage of the early morning dew to begin their day's work.

"This year is a good year. The fruits are large, well-colored, and have high sugar content," said Wang Keping, head of Tiefo Village's shareholding economic cooperative, standing at a high point in the orchard and looking out over the continuous apple groves with a smile on his face. Behind him, 2,765 acres of apple orchards stretch out magnificently.

Wang Keping explained that Tiefo Village adopts a model of "centralized planting with individual management," organizing over 430 fruit farmers with unified planning, unified technical standards, and unified sales, solving the problem of individual households struggling to cope with market risks.

"This year's apples can sell for at least 4.2 yuan per pound, and even dropped fruits can sell for 1 yuan," Wang Keping bent down to pick up a dropped fruit to show. "Don't look down on these fruits with imperfect appearance - they are all pure natural good apples. When processed into juice and jam, they are very popular, with no waste at all."

He calculated an account: this year's high-yield gardens reach over 5,000 pounds per acre, and based on the guaranteed minimum price, the output value per acre exceeds 20,000 yuan.

"This is much better than when farmers planted scattered plots themselves. Back then, prices were suppressed by merchants, and after a year of hard work, there wasn't much profit."

Farmer Li, who was busy working in the orchard, chimed in: "After joining the cooperative, we don't worry about selling apples anymore, and prices are guaranteed. My 8-acre orchard earned nearly 100,000 yuan last year, and this year's growth is even better, so income could be even higher."

Leaving Tiefo Village, we visited Jingchuan County's Green Source Fruit Industry Co., Ltd. In the spacious factory area, workers were busy sorting, packaging, and storing apples - a scene of bustling activity.

Company Chairman He Cunlin led us on a tour of his fruit storage facility. "The company's total storage capacity reaches 10,000 tons. We not only purchase apples ourselves but also provide storage services for fruit farmers and merchants. Storage fees are 20 cents per pound - it doesn't seem like much, but with large volumes, annual storage fee income reaches over 3 million yuan." He Cunlin explained that cold chain storage enables off-peak sales, extending the apple selling period, avoiding price drops caused by concentrated market entry, stabilizing market supply while increasing income.

"Our apples have good quality and are very popular in the market, especially in major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen." He Cunlin picked up an apple to show. "Look at this apple - fully red, high-shouldered, well-shaped, high sugar content, crisp and sweet taste. It can sell for good prices in the market."

In the sorting workshop, over ten workers sat along the assembly line, carefully selecting apples and categorizing them by size, color, and quality. In one corner of the workshop, packaged apples were piled high, ready to be shipped to southern markets.

Ms. Zhang, working on the assembly line, said her home is in a nearby village and she has been working here for three years. "I can earn over 80 yuan a day, and it doesn't interfere with taking care of home or picking up children from school. It's much better than working away from home."

He Cunlin stated that the company not only drives the development of surrounding apple cultivation but also provides employment opportunities for local residents. "We pay over 500,000 yuan in wages annually. Sorting, moving, and packing all require manpower, and during busy times we hire over 100 people."

On the afternoon of the 13th, we visited Feiyun Village in Feiyun Town, where continuous orchards presented a busy scene. Farmers climbed ladders, carefully picking apples, while workers nearby were sorting and packing.

Feiyun Village fruit farmer Kang Xiaoming was picking apples. "The weather has been good this year, apples are growing well, and prices are higher than last year. Look at these fruits - big and red. Merchants are competing to buy them when they see them." Kang Xiaoming wiped his sweat, his face beaming with smiles.

He said that although growing apples is hard work, income gets better year by year. "My family has 10 acres of apple trees. This year we planted 4 acres of dwarf dense planting orchards with Gala variety. The other 6 acres are standard orchards, all Fuji. This year we bagged 60,000 fruits and expect to earn 120,000 yuan."

According to the Jingchuan County Fruit Industry Bureau, in recent years, Jingchuan County has focused on developing modern dwarf dense planting demonstration gardens, following the development strategy of "enhancing quality in standard orchards, expanding scale with dwarf planting, and extending the industrial chain county-wide." Through replanting and gap-filling methods, the county has established 18,000 acres of new dwarf rootstock dense planting apple orchards, equipped 16,000 acres with support frame drip irrigation facilities, and introduced over 30 new superior varieties including Venus Gold, Ruixue, Red Sonya, Yanfu series, and Zhongcheng series, gradually forming a planting system of "early, mid, and late-season varieties with red, yellow, and green color combinations." The county's orchard area remains stable at 180,000 acres. In 2021, the "Jingchuan Apple" geographical trademark was registered, with enterprises using brands such as "Fuyuanhong," "Jingzhenjinguo," "Jingshuihe Pan," and "Cunlin Fruit Industry," among which "Fuyuanhong" and "Jingshuihe Pan" were selected for the "Ganwei" agricultural product brand directory. With continuous brand building and increased market development efforts, "Jingchuan Apple" is moving beyond Gansu Province to reach the entire nation, becoming a shining regional calling card.

Jingchuan County's apple industry is becoming an important pillar of local rural revitalization. Through cooperative group development, off-peak sales from storage facilities, and careful management by fruit farmers, everyone in this apple industry chain is enjoying the happiness brought by the harvest while creating a better life through their hard work.

In this harvest season, fruit farmers in Jingchuan County are busy and fulfilled. The red apples not only paint the autumn of the Loess Plateau red but also bring prosperous good days.