Huangyan Tangerine History
1. Cultivation History
Huangyan has a long history of citrus cultivation, with citrus records dating back to about the 3rd century BC [3]. It is 2300 years ago. The book "Records of Linhai Soil and Foreign Objects" written by Shen Ying during the Three Kingdoms period records that there are wild kumquats in the Huangyan area: "Chicken and oranges are as big as a finger. They are sweet in taste. They are found in Yongning."
Huangyan is located in the central part of Zhejiang, with the sea to the east and mountains to the west. It has a subtropical oceanic monsoon climate, with no scorching heat in summer, no severe cold in winter, and drought in late autumn. The average annual temperature is 17°C and the average annual precipitation is 1700mm. , the frost-free period is 270 days. These are the most suitable climate conditions for the growth and development of citrus. At the same time, both sides of the Yongning River, the concentrated citrus production area in Huangyan, are alluvial loam. The soil is fertile, deep, sandy, and has good ventilation. Coupled with the ebb and flow of the Yongning River, it is rich in nutrients necessary for the growth and development of citrus. Organic matter and mineral trace elements nourish the soil and provide an ideal habitat for the establishment and reproduction of citrus plants. The citrus produced has moderate sweetness and sourness, strong flavor, especially fresh, sweet and delicious, and is of excellent quality [1].
Huangyan tangerines are widely planted in Huangyan. According to relevant documents recorded in 1932, the Huangyan Orange District “starts from the river mouth in the east and forms orange gardens along both sides of the Yongning River, Xijiang River, Nanguan River, Dongguan River and their tributaries” [3]. Before the Anti-Japanese War, the cultivated area in Huangyan County was about 20,000 acres. "China Industry" (1932) records that Zhejiang Province has "2.1 million dans of fruits, including 622,700 dans of citrus. Huangyan is the most famous and has the largest output, with an annual output of 600,000 dans, accounting for 10% of the province's total citrus output. 96.4%”[1]. Since 1937, the coastal areas have been severely harassed by Japanese imperialist aggression, which has brought disaster to Huangyan citrus. In 1946, citrus production returned to the good pre-war level, reaching 385,000 quintals. On the eve of liberation, the citrus cultivation area in Huangyan County was approximately 22,000 acres [3].
In order to strengthen the research and management of citrus production, in 1952, with the support of the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Forestry, Huangyan established the County Citrus Technical Guidance Institute and the County Citrus Administrative Agency - Special Products Section (later changed to Specialty Products Bureau, Forestry Bureau). Since then, Huangyan Citrus has opened a new page in history.
In terms of planting scope, in 1952, in accordance with the central government’s call to “grow fruit trees into the mountains without competing for land with grain and cotton”, a mountain citrus experimental station was established in Toutuo. In 1954, a pilot project of growing citrus on the mountain was carried out in Ningxi. In 1955, multiple demonstrations were held to establish a model for growing oranges in mountainous areas, overcoming the constraints of the traditional concept of "growing oranges only by boat on the mountain". In 1957, the tidal tidal orange planting experiment was successfully carried out at Jinqing Machinery Farm. Since then, a broad way has been opened for the development of citrus in mountainous areas and coastal areas. From the Xishan District to the East Coast, there are orange groves everywhere, making it a veritable orange town[3].
In terms of quantity, the total output of Huangyan citrus in 1949 was 273,800 dan, and in 1952 it exceeded the highest level before liberation, reaching 478,000 dan. Since then, the output has steadily increased, breaking through the 1 million quintal mark in 1962 and 1.2 million quintals in 1985, ranking first in the country. In 1986, it reached 1.2515 million tons, equivalent to 4.57 times the output in 1949 at the beginning of liberation. This year's output ranked second in the country after Dongguan City, Guangdong Province. In 1994, the output was 129,000 tons, the highest in history. It has been the number one county in citrus production in China for many years. The citrus fruits are sold at home and abroad. It is truly a prosperous period [1].
From the perspective of market development, in 1951, China National Produce Company established an citrus purchasing station in Huangyan, which opened up the citrus market and promoted citrus production. In 1952, 68,614 tons of citrus were exported to the Soviet Union for the first time, opening up the international market. In 1960, it was exported to Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Macao, and in 1980, it crossed the Pacific and entered Canada. According to statistics from 1952 to 1988, more than 240,000 tons of citrus were exported, and exports accounted for more than 50% of purchases [3].
From a quality perspective, citrus varieties are gradually improving. Over the past fifty years, through the joint efforts of scientific and technological workers and orange farmers, a number of low-end varieties have been eliminated through resource census, seed selection, introduction and breeding, and high-inoculation replacement, and Huangyan's characteristic varieties have been actively developed - —Local early and early-ripening Wenzhou mandarins, navel oranges, Miyauchi Iyo oranges and other excellent varieties. In the 1990s, modern science and technology were widely used in citrus production, bringing a new leap in citrus fruit quality [3].
2. History of Honor
Huangyan tangerines are well-known at home and abroad for their three unique qualities: color, aroma and taste. Everyone who has tasted Huangyan tangerines talks about them with enthusiasm.
Huangyan Milk Orange in the Tang Dynasty has been listed as a tribute. The poem written by Wu Yuanheng, the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, in "Send off Wu Shiyu Sima to Taizhou" goes: "The scenery is light and the Wuhui is light, and the articles are transformed into ballads. The smokey forest is full of oranges and pomelo, and the sea of ??clouds is vast." In 1060, "New Book of Tang" written by Ouyang Xiu and others in the Northern Song Dynasty "", there is a record of "Taizhou native milk orange". In 1223, "Jiading Chicheng Chronicle" of the Song Dynasty recorded more than 10 citrus varieties in Huangyan [1].
During the Shaoxing period of the Southern Song Dynasty, Zeng Hongfu, the prefect of Taizhou, wrote a poem in praise of him, which included the sentence: "After paying tribute from Wenzhou, all the people in Dongting avoided the banquet." After Taizhou paid citrus tribute to the palace, the famous Hunan Dongting tangerines and Guangdong Luofu tangerines were shunned." There was also a debate at that time. Han Yanzhi, who had served as the governor of Wenzhou, wrote the world's first monograph on citrus, "Ju Lu". The preface said: "Every town in Wenzhou grows citrus, and the one who grows it in the mud mountains is especially outstanding." I recommend it first." This view was opposed by Chen Jingyi, the author of my country's first botanical dictionary "Quan Fang Bei Zu". Chen Jingyi was a native of Huangyan and was very knowledgeable. When quoting "Ju Lu", he pointed out, "Han knew that milk tangerines came from the mud mountains, but he did not know that they came from the Huangyan in Tiantai. Those who come from the mud mountains are indeed strange. Huangyan is the most extraordinary place in the world." [3]
Later, in the early Yuan Dynasty, Lin Fang used thick pen and ink to describe the beauty of the milk oranges in Duanjiang (today's Toutuo Town). He said, "Tai Prefecture is the fifth county, and tangerines are produced only in Huangyan. There are two out of ten townships in Huangyan, and the only beautiful product is Duanjiang in Beili. The remaining four miles are all rich people." Milk tangerine, “its skin is lustrous, its smell is fragrant, its flesh is vegetarian, its veins are attached outside, its core is thin and thin, and its taste is sweet and lasting.” “At that time, Taiwan’s milk tangerine was the number one fruit in the world. Although the fragrance of Lianzi (lychee) and the refreshing taste of Hanxiao (pear) are still there, how about the thousands of greens in Dongting and the yellows of several inches in Yongjia?" This shows the quality of orange fruits produced in Huangyan Duanjiang [1, 3].
Milk orange is an ancient variety of orange. Modern Huangyan trees include Zaojie, local Zaoju, Zhuhong, Huan, Wenzhou Satsuma, Ponkan, etc. Among them, Zaojie, local Zaoju and Hui are unique varieties to Huangyan, and Zaojie was the first to be marketed. The local early fruit is small in size, rich in orange-yellow color, sweet in taste, rich in juice, beautiful in color and with very small core. It is second to none among Huangyan mandarins and enjoys an international reputation [3].
Table 1 Honors received by "Huangyan Mandarin Oranges" after the reform and opening up [1, 2]
Year Honor
1993 at Zhejiang Province High-Quality Agricultural Products Exhibition In 1994, Huangyan's local early tangerines won the title of "Best Selling Fruit"
In 1994, local early tangerines and Miyauchi Iyo tangerines won the first prize in the provincial competition
In 1995, local early tangerines Both mandarin oranges and Miyauchi Iyo mandarin oranges won the gold medal at the second China Agricultural Expo
In 1996, Huangyan won the honor of "China's Hometown of Mandarin Oranges"
In 1997, local early mandarin oranges were awarded the title of "Tangerine Hometown of China". Confirmed as a famous brand product in China at three National Agricultural Expositions
In 1999, Huangyan’s local early tangerine was recognized as a famous brand product at the China International Agricultural Exposition; Huangyan was listed as a high-quality citrus production base county by the Ministry of Agriculture
p>In 2000, the "Huangyan Mandarin" certification trademark was approved for registration, and the "Huangyan Mandarin" brand was gradually established
In 2001, Zhejiang Huangyan Canned Food Group Co., Ltd. was selected as one of the "Top Ten Enterprises in China's Canned Food Industry"
In 2001, Huangyan local breakfast and Miyagawa Wenzhou mandarin oranges were recognized as Zhejiang famous brand products by the provincial government
In 2002, Huangyan local breakfast was awarded the title of Zhejiang agricultural famous brand product
< p>In 2003, Huangyan mandarin oranges passed the country's first batch of pollution-free agricultural products certificationIn 2004, Huangyan mandarin oranges obtained national regional product protection of origin and were selected as one of the "Top Ten Famous Brands of Citrus in Zhejiang Province"
3. History of legal protection[1]
In June 2000, the "Huangyan Mandarin" certification trademark was approved for registration, and the "Huangyan Mandarin" brand was gradually established.
Since August 31, 2004, the State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine has implemented regional origin protection for Huangyan mandarins in accordance with the "Regulations on the Protection of Products from Regions of Origin" (No. 112 of 2004).
The geographical scope of origin of Huangyan tangerines shall be based on the geographical scope proposed by the Huangyan District People's Government of Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province in the "Letter on the Demarcation of Opinions on the Product Protection and Production Areas of Origin of Huangyan tangerines" (Huang Zheng [2003] No. 18). It is the administrative area under the jurisdiction of Huangyan District, Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province.
Successfully registered a geographical indication certificate in 2008.
Huangyan mandarin oranges are here today
Huangyan mandarin orange cultivation has a long history, and it created brilliance during the era of planned economy. At that time, one out of seven oranges eaten by people across the country was from Huangyan Mandarin oranges; one of the two cans of canned oranges eaten by people around the world is produced by Huangyan.
On February 5, 1983, the State Council issued the "Urban and Rural Market Trade Management Measures", which allowed farmers to go to cities for business and long-distance trafficking. Market management was transformed to serve economic construction and integrated management into services. among. In this way, the original single-model fruit market has become an open model with diversified competition. In May of the same year, after the reform of the commune system, industrial and commercial administration offices were established in various places, and the original commune industrial and commercial offices were abolished. This move further stimulated farmers' enthusiasm for independent management and innovation, and the fruit market was completely liberalized. Since then, various brands of citrus have emerged one after another, and consumers' choice space has suddenly become larger. However, Huangyan tangerines, which retain the old business operation model, are losing ground[4].
In 1990, Dongguan, Guangdong took the lead in surpassing Huangyan in total output and area. Later, Quzhou and Linhai in the province also surpassed Huangyan. In terms of market brands, Jiangxi's "Ponkan", Guangdong's "Ponkan" and Sichuan's "Navel Orange" dominate the market. Huangyan Mandarin oranges have been neglected, and their output and quality have declined one after another [5]. At the same time, nearby brands such as "Linhai Tangerine" and "Yongquan Tangerine" have gradually developed and grown, which has had a huge impact on "Huangyan Tangerine". In recent years, the development of "Huangyan Tangerine" has even declined [6].
1. Where are the oranges?
In recent years, as a child in rural areas, I have watched year after year, more and more oranges rotting on the branches, and more and more orange trees being cut down as Firewood was stuffed into the stove.
The oranges in the mountains and fields are becoming more and more unpalatable, and the varieties of oranges sold in supermarkets and on the streets are becoming more and more popular every year, which is dazzling, but they are not always very delicious. . As a native of Orange County, it is really sad to not know what kind of oranges are sold.
It is one problem that no one is planting oranges, but another problem is what kind of oranges to plant. Judging from the demand in the market, consumers are obviously becoming more and more picky. In the past, fewer and fewer people are buying Zaojie, 槧桔, ponkan and other varieties that were planted in every household. Zaojie is dried, and easy-to-store 槧桔 and other varieties are being purchased. Ponkan is sour, and the market is increasingly fond of sweet, soft and juicy local tangerines and Linhai tangerines. As a result, the demand for oranges, tangerines, and ponkans that were once grown by every household in rural Huangyan became less and less. The final result was that orange farmers also gave up planting, leaving the orange trees to destroy themselves.
In an article comparing the development of the citrus industry in Linhai and Huangyan, it was clearly pointed out that in 2008, Linhai, Huangyan and Sanmen, the three main producing areas of Taizhou citrus, sold 300,000 tons of citrus, of which Linhai had already sold 300,000 tons of citrus. 79.3%, while Huangyan only has 30%[4]. The status of Huangyan tangerines is in jeopardy.
2. Is Orange Farm safe?
In recent years, as orange trees have been cut down, more and more orange farmers have been laid off. Farmers no longer grow oranges, but choose to work. The elders said, "Oranges are too cheap now and cannot be sold at a good price", or "it is better to go out to work to grow oranges." For today's rural people, oranges are no longer the main source of income for farmers.
On the one hand, the rapid development of cities continues to devour land resources in the suburbs, and at the same time, it also creates more jobs. The economic income of urban construction jobs has increased steadily, and orange farmers have put down their work in the fields. tools and turn to the city to obtain living resources. On the other hand, the economic benefits of oranges have been declining year after year. The quality of the products grown by rural retail households is limited and the storage technology is rough, so they are gradually losing competitiveness in the market. The cost of inputs such as pesticides is rising with the CPI index, and the overall input-output is declining. The proportion is getting higher and higher, causing orange farmers to finally give up and continue to collect profits from oranges. The sum of the two means that the labor supply market for orange farmers is shrinking.
Economies of scale or small-scale farmer economy is an important multiple-choice question faced by Huangyan’s existing orange industry policies and markets.
Or to put it another way, does Huangyan need professional orange growers in specialized, large-scale plantations, or decentralized, self-sufficient amateur orange farmers?
Agriculture in Europe and the United States is a farm economy. A single large farm may provide 30 to 40% of the country's supply of certain agricultural products. The benefits of economies of scale are obvious: intensive land use, technology concentration, rapid market response, large-scale mechanized production, specialized production and storage, lower average costs, etc. However, China’s basic national conditions cannot be ignored: there is less land and more people; land resources are scarce, but China is a large agricultural country. Agriculture is the foundation of the country. It is difficult to imagine what China would be like without farmers and agriculture. Existing research also shows that agricultural industry agglomeration based on smallholder economy is more in line with China's agricultural economic development.
Therefore, simply pursuing economies of scale is by no means the way to develop the Huangyan tangerine industry. Perhaps we can also find a path of agricultural economic development with Chinese characteristics: The development of Huangyan's tangerine industry requires not only large-scale, specialized plantations and professional tangerine farmers, but also a considerable number of small-scale, decentralized amateur tangerine farmers. . If large-scale and professional plantations are the backbone, then amateur orange farmers are the branches. An industry with only branches but no branches is weak, and an industry with only branches but no branches is also unstable. Only branches are always strong. , Only then can the big tree canopy the sky to withstand the wind and rain.
With the gradual improvement of professional planting in current industrial policies, policies to guide and strengthen the industrial agglomeration development of the small-scale farmer economy should also be implemented as soon as possible. Don’t wait until all the retail orange farmers are lost and the orange trees are gone. If it is reduced to ashes and then valued and supported again, then the cost will be even greater.
3. Where is the market?
Due to factors such as difficulty in storage and high long-distance transportation costs, the production and supply of oranges is often regional. For example, sugar oranges from Guangdong are mostly sold in Guangdong; and Huangyan tangerines were famous at home and abroad thanks to their proximity to the Shanghai market. However, with the improvement of storage technology and the reduction of long-distance transportation costs, regional restrictions are constantly decreasing. For example, citrus varieties from Sichuan, Jiangxi and other places can also be seen in the Guangdong market. However, what is discouraging is that Huangyan honey, which is famous at home and abroad, Oranges have never been displayed in fruit shops in Guangdong.
Where is the market for Huangyan tangerines? Or let’s ask another question: In the national market, where is the competitiveness of Huangyan mandarins?
From the perspective of production volume, Huangyan tangerines are subject to "Huangyan". Oranges produced by non-Huangyan are not considered "Huangyan tangerines", so that the production volume is limited, and more and more small Large-scale orange farmers have given up growing tangerines, and market supply is also decreasing.
From the perspective of external brand promotion, due to administrative reasons, Taizhou has been divided into Huangyan Mandarin, Linhai Mandarin, etc., and the prefecture-level city has formed strong competitiveness and cannot gather the entire city. We must exert all our efforts to promote and sell, and only Huangyan District can go all out. Relatively speaking, the resources it has and the efforts it can exert will be smaller.
In terms of planting technology, Huangyan’s citrus planting technology is leading in the country, which is understandable. The existing citrus research base and other professional research institutions are far ahead in the research and development of new varieties, the prevention and control of pests and diseases, and increasing the yield per mu. But this does not mean that it can win the market.
The development of the market still needs to follow the rules of the market. The relationship between supply and demand is the fundamental law of the market economy. How to move the balance point of supply and demand to the upper right is a topic that needs to be discussed in depth by the government, orange farmers, and researchers.
4. Where is the brand?
Does "Huangyan tangerine" specifically refer to a certain variety of oranges or generally refers to oranges produced in Huangyan?
Many people have been asked this question, but there is no unified and clear answer. Some people think that it refers specifically to the local area of ????Huangyan, and some people think that as long as Huangyan produces it, it can be called "Huangyan tangerine". ”, it can be seen that the concept of “Huangyan Mandarin” is confusing.
Brands such as Sihui Shatang Orange, Jiangxi Lugan, Sichuan Navel Orange, etc. also clearly mark the product varieties when using place names. However, the "Huangyan Mandarin" also caused confusion due to the unclear concept of variety. Consumers are easily deceived. Once consumers are misled, the brand's image will be easily affected.
Judging from historical records, the varieties of Huangyan tangerines mainly include Zaojie, local tangerine, sage orange, Miyagawa Wenzhou tangerine, etc., but in the "Huangyan Mandarin Orange Origin Region Protection" and The "Huangyan Tangerine Certification Trademark Management Regulations" place more emphasis on the administrative region of the place of origin. With the development of new technologies, more and more varieties of citrus have been derived. Consumers are becoming increasingly confused as to whether the varieties included in the concept of Huangyan tangerines are specific or general.
Therefore, in order to operate the "Huangyan Tangerine" brand well, we must first deal with the issues of product varieties covered.
For consumers, the quality and name of oranges are the most important. Quality wins the recognition of consumers, and the name is important for consumers to remember the purchased product, triggering repeat purchases and achieving word-of-mouth publicity. Carrier, whether a name can become a brand depends entirely on consumer recognition and publicity. Therefore, a confusing brand is never a good choice, and choosing and clarifying suitable citrus varieties is the first step in establishing and developing the "Huangyan Mandarin" brand.
If Huangyan tangerines are a collection of several varieties, then the brand management of companies such as Procter & Gamble, Unilever, and L'Oreal may be worthy of reference. On the one hand, they provide high-quality products and implement brand production line management; On the one hand, joint marketing of the parent brand and sub-brands is implemented to achieve the simultaneous development of the parent and sub-brands. At present, Linhai Miji can successfully carry out brand management and rapidly expand the market, which also benefits from the joint establishment of "mother and child brands".