"Consumers have always been drawn to vegetables in fancy packaging. These days, however, consumers are beginning to turn their attention back to the vegetable products themselves. Suppliers are working hard to simplify their packaging and give prominence to the product quality and freshness of their vegetables." This is according to Li Guilan, CEO of Shenzhen City Maoxiong Industry Co., Ltd., who recently shared her insight in the current developments in China's vegetable industry.
"The Chinese territory is vast and the weather conditions are diverse. As technology improves and production areas expand, many vegetable varieties have already lost the distinction between in-season and off-season."
"Our company can guarantee year-round supply of the same vegetables from different production areas. Since overall living standards have improved, consumers have started to value vegetable quality and variety. We see many companies continuing to improve their plantation management."
"Within the major categories of vegetables, many different product varieties emerge as a result of a continuous effort in cultivation. We carefully select the product varieties with the best product quality, the greatest flavor, and the most reasonable price. In addition to the product itself, our dedicated team also investigates at an early stage such conditions as the plantation environment, weather, and geography. Our team selects the most suitable location and implements plantation methods in accordance with local conditions."
As for the rising price of vegetables, manager Li explained that: "Personally, I think the intermediates between the farm and the consumer are growing smaller in number, but the price of labor is rising and weather conditions are unstable, which leads to unexpected costs and a rising vegetable price."
Maoxiong Industry mainly sells directly from the farm or in supermarkets. Their production is based on the purchase orders of clients.
"Maoxiong has 9 branch offices in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore to take care of exports. Our vegetables are sold as far afield as Southeast Asia, the USA, Canada, Australia, Dubai, Germany, and the Netherlands.
Domestically we sell our vegetables through such large-scale chain supermarkets as Carrefour, CR Vanguard, Rainbow Department Store, Wal-Mart, Hema, and Yonghui. At the same time, we also work hard to open up and develop new markets, establish brand shops, and set up cooperative shops. We do this to solidify our market position and speed up the journey from farm to consumer."
"China is the largest vegetable producer in the world. The Chinese import volume of vegetables is much smaller than the Chinese import volume of fruit. We mainly import red onions from India, potatoes from Pakistan, and carrots from Australia. Even though we also produce these vegetables in China, we must also import these vegetables to meet consumer demand for high product quality and product variety."
Li also explained that as far as the transport of export products is concerned: "We select the highest quality and most efficient sea freight options available, except for products with a short shelf life, in which case we consider the more expensive air freight options."
"Maoxiong Industry is a company specialized in the production, processing, storage, and distribution of green products. The company was established in 1997. Maoxiong has farms all over the country that produce all kinds of leafy vegetables, root vegetables, and edible mushrooms. "We attach the highest importance to product quality. Our company is growing and we will consider investing in overseas farms to expand the product variety we can offer to our customers, or perhaps we will cooperate with overseas suppliers instead."
For more information:
Li Guilan - Manager
Shenzhen City Maoxiong Industry Co., Ltd.
E-mail: yanglc@mx-greenftusff.com