Luochuan, Yan'an: Optimizing and Refining Apple Industry
to Achieve the Goal of Making Fruit Farmers and Fruit Villages Stronger and Richer

On August 15, Themed Interview Team of "The Economic Spring is Revitalizing Rural Areas in China -- Voice of Shaanxi, via Which We Communicate with the World" came Luochuan and shared the joy before the harvest in the apple orchard of farmer Chen Changjian. In this wonderful sunny August, the faint smell of apple has filled the orchard.

"Ten years ago, my income on this five mu of land was eight or nine thousand yuan. Now it is one hundred thousand yuan". Chen Changjian is a native of Luoyang Village, Jiuxian Town, Luochuan County, and his parents and ancestors were all farmers. By growing apples for several years, he made a fortune. In Luochuan County, there are still many fruit farmers like Chen Changjian, together, they turned Luochuan, an old revolutionary base, into an apple county.

Improved technology and standardized management have benefited fruit farmers

In 1947, Li Xin'an, a farmer in Luochuan County, brought back 200 apple seedlings from Henan Province on donkeys and planted them in his own land. Since then, apple began to be grown in Luochuan, and gradually grew and became a popular gold card in Shaanxi Province.

"Now, the apples are bigger and sweeter", Chen Changjian said to the reporter with a smile. He is 74 years old, so he rarely works in the fields. Most of his time he gives technical guidance to farmers in the village. After years of development, the apple planting in Luochuan has been transformed from the beginning of extensive management into a standardized planting model. At present, there are 980 mu of standard demonstration garden of apple in Luoyang Village, Jiuxian Town, with an average yield of more than 3,000 kg per mu.

At first, apple cultivation in Luoyang made several detours. Chen Changjian told reporters that in the past, the villagers planted and managed their own fruit trees. The extensive planting technology and management mode, as well as the low market price, made the apple not only lower in quality, but also no market.

"So now we have to leave no means untried to grow high quality apples. Only apples with high quality can sell well." Chen Changjian told reporters that in 2012, Luoyang Village made a bold decision to pioneer "apple tree cutting" in Shaanxi Province, cutting down half of the cultivated fruit trees per mu, and the trees numbers reduced from the original 28 to 14, so as to thoroughly solve the ventilation and light conditions, and facilitate mechanized operation. Then, the village carried out a variety of standardized apple planting and management models, constantly improving apple quality.

"The variety and technology has been upgrading and transforming. We need to improve our production skills and train people in apple management, "said Li Xiaojun, the First Secretary of Luoyang Village, Jiuxian Town, Luochuan County. Technology is now the most important factor in promoting the apple industry throughout the village. Currently, the local top fruit companies have established the cooperative relationships with Luoyang Village, and their front-end technicians have went to the village to teach the farmers planting knowledge and new technical ideas.

The quality of apples is getting better and better, and the income of fruit farmers is getting higher and higher. Through standardized management, more than 500,000 mu of apple orchards in Luochuan County have passed the certification of national green food (apple) raw material production base, the quality of apples has been comprehensively improved, and the profits have been greatly improved. More than 60% of fruit farmers in Luochuan County have an average annual income of more than 100,000 yuan, the total income of apple industry in Luochuan County exceeds 4.5 billion yuan, and the Luochuan apple brand is well-known at home and abroad.

"My family planted 30 mu of apples, 15 mu of apple trees have begun to bear fruit, last year, through doing e-commerce, I used a mobile phone and sold out of all the apples in a week, and the income of every catty apple increased by 3-5 yuan", said Zhang Yongliang, a villager of Luoyang Village.

In 2012, Zhang Yongliang, a migrant worker, returned to the countryside, and contacted four merchants on QQ to buy his apples and gained 40,000 yuan. Drawn benefit from it, Zhang Yongliang began e-commerce sales of apple through QQ, Taobao, WeChat Shop and short video. "Last Spring Festival, on my best day, I sold more than 800 cases of apples and earned nearly 10,000 yuan", said Zhang Yongliang.

Since 2014, Luochuan has begun to accelerate the development of e-commerce in the whole county, making the concept of "Internet +" be deeply rooted in the hearts of cadres and fruit farmers in the whole county. At present, Luochuan County has trained 2901 e-commerce talents and incubated 45 related enterprises. Last year, Luochuan County was identified by the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Finance as a "National Comprehensive Demonstration County Leading E-commerce into Rural Areas".

"Now, the apple is directly bought by merchants in the orchard, our selling price is about 3-4 yuan, but their selling price to consumers may be 15-16 yuan, merchants lower the price, and the profits are taken away by them," said Li Xiaojun. The sale of apple on the Internet has changed the sales model and changed the leading role of merchants in the past. "In the past, the selling price of apple was determined by merchants. Now we sell apple through the Internet, which not only sells fast, but also has a high price", said Zhang Yongliang.

Li Xiaojun said that only by improving technology, improving infrastructure and establishing a standardized management model can we expand and strengthen the apple industry and promote the substantial and sustainable income of apple farmers. Therefore, Luoyang Village cooperates with local fruit companies to provide technology and establish trusteeship. At present, Luochuan County has invested huge funds to improve apple storage, transportation and other infrastructure construction, establishing and improving apple-related industrial chain. "In a word, only by growing and selling good apples can the income of the masses be raised and the rural industry be revitalized", said Li Xiaojun. (Chen Rong, Intern Yuan Linna)