Maoming, China's largest longan production center, is currently moving large volumes to the market. This year, the area saw a bumper harvest with a record-high production of 490,000 tons. With a long history of planting longans, it is the largest production area in China with a planted area of 790,000 mu, growing varieties of Chuliang and Shixia.

Maoming is also the birthplace of the Chuliang variety. Since the 1980s, this variety has been popularized by grafting and other breeding methods. The global planted area of this variety exceeds 2.5 million mu, covering Fujian, Guangxi, Hainan, Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou, Taiwan and other places, as well as Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos, making it the most popular variety planted in China and even the world.

In recent years, the techniques used to adjust the production period have been fully popularized, extending the flowering period and the market period by one month, which has created a clear distinction in time among the early, mid-season and late varieties. At the end of April or early May of each year, Maoming's early crop starts to make appearances on the market. The purchase prices at the time are as high as 30 yuan per kilogram for Chuliang longans, and 20 yuan per kilogram for Shixia. In early July, the volume hides up and prices begin to fall.

In addition, the export volume of the area has increased significantly this year. Nearly 4,000 tons are exported to the United States, Australia, the European Union, and Southeast Asia.

Source: Fruit Critic