Current Situation of Table Grape Industry in Henan Province and Development Recommendations

Yan WANG, Hongquan SHANG*, Yusui LOU, Zhongwei LU, Linnan WEI

1. Institute of Horticulture, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou 450000, China; 2. Anyang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Anyang 455000, China

Abstract Through the investigation of the current production situation, regional distribution, variety structure, production organization and existing problems of table grapes in Henan Province, this paper conducted an in-depth analysis on the advantages and disadvantages of the development of table grapes industry in Henan Province. In view of the current problems and development trend, it came up with some pertinent recommendations, including transforming the concept of cultivation, adhering to the principle of "high-quality varieties, standardized cultivation, mechanized management, large-scale operation, and diversified market", strengthening brand building, and promote the integrated development of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries, so as to promote the change of table grape industry in Henan Province from "quantitative scale model" to "quality benefit model", and promote its sustainable and high-quality development.

Key words Table grape, Current situation, Development recommendations, Henan Province

1 Introduction

With the agricultural industrial structure adjustment in recent years, the grape industry characterized as quick and high benefits has gradually become a leading industry in the development of characteristic forest and fruit planting in many regions. In Henan Province, there are sufficient sunlight, suitable temperature and abundant precipitation, which provide favorable climate and ecological environmental conditions for the development of the grape industry. In recent years, the planting area and yield of table grapes in Henan have steadily increased, making Henan Province become a major province and main cultivation area for table grape cultivation in China. The grapes cultivated in Henan Province mainly include Red Globe, Kyoho, Summer Black and Shine Muscat, which account for more than 80% of the province’s planting area, and the cultivation mode is mainly open field cultivation. In recent years, Shine Muscat has gradually become a popular and mainstream variety, showing a rapid growth trend. In order to further promote high quality development of the table grape industry in Henan Province, we investigated current production situations and analyzed problems of the table grape industry, and came up with some pertinent recommendations.

2 Current production situations

2.1 Production situations

According to the division of provinces, the grape production regions can be divided into large-scale planting region (planting area accounting for ≥5%), general-scale planting region (planting area accounting for 2% to 5%), and small planting areas (planting area accounting for <2%). As per this criterion, Henan Province is a large-scale planting region. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China, since 2014, both the planting area and yield of grapes in Henan Province have continued to increase(Fig.1). In 2019, the grape planting area in Henan Province was about 41 200 ha, accounting for 9.71% of the province’s fruit planting area, ranking fourth in the whole country; the grape yield was about 832 200 t, accounting for 8.75% of the province’s fruit yield, ranking fifth in the whole country.

Fig.1 Grape planting area and yield of Henan Province

2.2 Regional distribution

Henan Province has a superior geographical location and good ecological conditions for the development of the grape industry. Except Nanyang City, other cities are in the warm temperate semi-humid zone, with an active accumulated temperature of 4 000-5 000 ℃, a frost-free period of more than 200 d, and a precipitation of 500-900 mm. According to statistics of Henan Province, grapes are planted in 109 counties of 18 cities in Henan, and more than 98% are table grapes(Table 1).

Table 1 Grape planting area and yield in cities of Henan Province

2.3 Variety structure

Due to factors such as the local economic level, the awareness of grape growers, the promotion of agricultural departments and the channels for obtaining information, different regions of Henan Province are diverse in the selection of grape varieties. At present, in addition to the traditional varieties of Red Globe and Kyoho, Summer Black and Shine Muscat which have a larger promotion area in recent years, there are also varieties of Crimson Seedless, Hutai No.8, Gold Finger, 8611,

etc.

(Table 2). Among them, the planting area of Shine Muscat shows a trend of rapid growth year by year. Since 2017, the planting area of grape in Henan Province increased 4 667 ha, the variety was mostly Shine Muscat; the early-maturing varieties were mainly Summer Black, and other varieties had only a small area of cultivation.

Table 2 Grape varieties planted in cities of Henan in 2019

Generally, there is no certain rule to follow in the distribution of planted grape varieties in Henan. Growers mainly rely on experience and information to select varieties, and rarely carry out in-depth market research and analysis. As a result, grape growers are blind in variety selection and just jump on the bandwagon.

2.4 Cultivation mode

With the technological development, the grape cultivation mode in Henan Province tends to become diversified, from open field cultivation to rain shelter cultivation, early cultivation promoted with facilities, and root restriction cultivation. Facility cultivation not only expands the grape planting area, but also adjusts the distribution of the grape industry, and significantly increases the economic, social and ecological benefits of the grape industry. With the widespread application of the facility cultivation mode, since 2012, the southern region of Henan Province has once again started a wave of grape planting, and the planting area has increased rapidly. The planting area of grapes in Xinyang, Nanyang, Zhumadian ranks in the forefront of Henan Province.

2.5 Production organization

With the promotion of land circulation policy, the grape production of individual household is gradually replaced by professional planting cooperatives and agricultural development companies. In recent years, a lot of agricultural development companies and professional cooperatives with the theme of grape planting have emerged in Henan, such as Henan Yuanlin Agricultural Development Co., Ltd., Henan Jiemei Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd., Henan Hongli High-Tech Agricultural Development Co., Ltd., and Shangshui County Luyuan Fruit Grape Cooperative,

etc.

In addition, the construction of sightseeing vineyards in the suburbs of cities is becoming more and more perfect, and the sightseeing orchards in the suburbs of cities and towns above the county level have gradually formed a scale. Through sightseeing picking, leisure tourism, grape culture festivals and other activities, it attracts tourists from the surrounding cities (towns), promotes the sales of grape products, and guides tourists appreciate and enjoy grape culture.

2.6 Storage and processing

The grape processing industry in Henan Province is weak and lacks well-known leading enterprises. Large-scale grape processing enterprises mainly include Minquan Jiuding Wines Co., Ltd., Henan Minquan Grape Wine Making Co., Ltd., and Henan Hongda Grape Wine Factory. In recent years, with the rapid development of the grape industry, small grape processing enterprises have been built and put into production one after another. The product types are mainly dry wines, and the proportion of sweet wine is gradually increasing, some also produces grape juice, grape vinegar and other products.

2.7 Production of grape seedlings

The grape seedlings in Henan Province are basically self-produced and sold. Many cities such as Zhengzhou, Luoyang, Shangqiu, and Zhumadian have seedlings breeding. In addition, high-quality grape grafted seedlings from Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Shandong, Hebei also account for a certain proportion. Grape seedlings in Henan Province are mainly cutting seedlings, and the main varieties are Summer Black, Muscat kyoho, Jingya, Shine Muscat,

etc.

The price of cutting seedlings is 3-8 yuan/plant; the price of grafted seedlings is 5-10 yuan/plant.

2.8 Market situations

In recent years, Henan Province has realized the annual supply of table grapes, and has established a distribution model with a wholesale market as the mainstay, supplemented by other retail channels. Through the investigation of the fruit market in Henan Province, it is found that the annual supply of table grapes is basically stable with little change (Table 3). Since 2012, Henan Province has started to plant Shine Muscat, but most of them are for sightseeing, and the flow into the wholesale market is very limited. The main varieties of table grapes that flow into the market in Henan Province are still Red Globe, Kyoho, Summer Black,

etc.

2.9 Benefit analysis

In Henan Province, the self-produced table grape varieties are mainly Red Globe, Kyoho, Summer Black, and Shine Muscat, and the market time is concentrated from June to October. In 2019, the market prices of main table grapes in Henan Province are shown in Table 4. Compared with Red Globe, Summer Black, and Kyoho, Shine Muscat has a longer market time, higher price, and higher planting benefits.

Table 3 Supply of table grapes in Henan Province in 2019

Table 4 Market price and period of main table grapes in Henan Province in 2019

3 Main problems in table grape industry of Henan Province

3.1 Unreasonable regional division and relatively single variety structure

The development of grape industry in Henan Province is generally blind, the planning and distribution are not looking forward and the phenomenon of following the trend of planting is serious. Most of the regions are unilaterally pursuing industrial scale growth, and lack of in-depth investigation and analysis of variety adaptability and market demand, leading to a mismatch between variety, scale, production capacity and market demand. Although the planting area of grapes is increasing year by year, the cultivation varieties are limited to a few "international" varieties, and variety structure is single. At present, varieties of table grapes planted in Henan Province are still dominated by middle and late maturing varieties such as Red Globe and Kyoho. Early maturing, early middle maturing and seedless grape varieties account for a relatively small proportion. The mature market period and peak sales period are relatively concentrated, which easily lead to price fluctuations, serious slow sales, accordingly affecting the planting benefits.

3.2 Backward planting concept and low standardization level

Grape production in Henan Province is still concentrated on yield and extensive management, which has caused most of the middle and low-end grapes to be reduced to "general merchandise" with poor quality, low price, and low economic benefits. Although rain shelter cultivation and facility cultivation have been widely promoted and applied in southern Henan, the level of standardized grape production is generally low, and the concept of high-quality and high-benefit standardized cultivation has not yet been popularized. At present, grape production in most regions of Henan Province is still dominated by open field cultivation, using hedges or V-shaped frame, which lacks unified and standardized technical regulations and product standards. As a result, fruit quality is uneven, the rate of excellent fruit is low, and the commodity is poor, which reduces sales prices, economic benefits and market competitiveness.

3.3 Low degree of organization and weak brand awareness

The degree of organization of the grape industry in Henan Province is still at a relatively low level, mainly family-based decentralized production and operation. The production scale is small and the organization and management are poor, making it difficult to form a scale effect. There are few professional cooperatives and professional companies, the leading role is limited, and most business entities lack brand awareness, products are not well-known, and market competitiveness is weak. Even though high-quality grapes are produced, post-production processing links such as grading, packaging, and storage are not in place, it will lead to poor commercialization and low planting returns, result in a decline in investment enthusiasm and accordingly hinder the healthy development of the grape industry.

3.4 Low degree of mechanization and high production cost

With the shortage of labor, the number of agricultural workers has decreased sharply. The existing agricultural labor force is generally old, the overall quality is low and the implementation of management skills is not in place. In addition, the degree of mechanization of orchard management is low, and a lot of labor is required, which causes the production cost to increase year by year, and the planting income is relatively low. These have seriously affected the enthusiasm of grape growers and the sustainable and healthy development of the grape industry.

4 Development recommendations

4.1 Making scientific plan and steady development

It is recommended to concentrate on the grape planting structure in the province, make clear the development positioning based on the local economic development, comprehensively consider the climatic conditions and market demand, carry out scientific selection, make reasonable distribution and diversified development, avoid blindly following the trend of planting, and avoid develop unsuitable varieties on a large scale.

4.2 Optimizing the variety structure and promoting standardized cultivation

The main production regions should actively adjust the variety structure, and the newly developed regions should focus on the diversification of varieties and the reasonable matching of varieties to ensure that the proportion of early, middle and late maturing grapes is appropriate, so that the grape maturing period and supply period are extended. In addition, every region should formulate a standardized cultivation management system in line with the development of the local grape industry based on local climate conditions, main planting varieties and cultivation techniques, so as to realize "one place has one policy, and one product has one method". Early-maturing varieties suitable for large-scale development in Henan include Summer Black, Ruidu Xiangyu, Hongqitezao, Zhengyan Seedless, Jingxiu and Jingya,

etc.

Middle-maturing varieties include Ruidukemei, Zhengpu No.1, Zhengpu No.2, Gold Finger, Muscat Hamburg, Muscat Kyoho, Miguang,

etc.

Late-maturing varieties mainly include Shine Muscat, Romantic Beauty, Nina Queen, Xinya, Xinyu,

etc.

4.3 Developing rain shelter cultivation and facility cultivation

In most parts of Henan Province, the annual precipitation is 500-900 mm. Excessive precipitation in the maturing season of grapes significantly reduces fruit quality. To adapt to the new market competition, it is necessary to promote rain shelter cultivation and take advantage of the good light conditions of the production regions in Henan to produce better grape products. Besides, it is recommended to develop forcing cultivation and delayed cultivation, and obtain higher economic benefits through lengthening the supply period of fresh grapes.

4.4 Promoting labor-saving cultivation and mechanized management

It is necessary to change the cultivation mode, from the traditional "dense planting, short trunk" model to the "sparse planting, high trunk" model. Therefore, it is recommended to use sparse planting to alleviate the growth, which not only improves the quality, but also reduces the workload of branch management and reduces labor costs. "High trunk" is favorable for mechanized operation. Combined with mechanical equipment and appropriate agronomic technology, it can greatly improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase the benefits.

4.5 Cultivating new business entities and strengthening the brand building

It is recommended to vigorously develop specialized grape companies, raise the level of mechanization and intensification through large-scale operations, reduce production costs and labor intensity, increase the commercial nature of the fruit, and build the brand. In addition, it is recommended to actively establish professional grape planting cooperatives, organize scattered farmers, and improve fruit quality and food safety through standardized cultivation techniques and the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and enhance market competitiveness.

4.6 Building characteristic industrial parks and developing leisure and sightseeing agriculture

The grape industry chain covers many contents, such as grape planting, by-product processing, sightseeing picking, tourism and leisure, agricultural experience, cultural popularization,

etc.

All of these can improve the economic benefits of the industry. Construction of grape characteristic industrial parks in the suburbs of cities or towns can not only attract the consumption of surrounding people, improve the industrial benefits, but also promote the revitalization of rural industries and the construction of beautiful countryside.

5 Prospects of the table grape industry

Henan has a large population and is one of the most populous provinces in China. In recent years, the economy of Henan Province has developed rapidly, people’s living standards have improved significantly, the demands for fresh agricultural products are surging, and the domestic demand space continues growing. At present, Henan’s self-produced grapes are mainly supplied to the provincial market, but their market share in the province’s grape market is relatively small, largely relying on the supply from Yunnan, Liaoning, Shaanxi, Zhejiang, Hebei and foreign imports. Therefore, the development prospects and market space of the grape industry are broad in Henan Province.

With the rapid economic and social development and the improving living standards of the people, the market demand for high-quality, and high-end fruits will continue to grow. Grape growers, cooperatives and professional companies must adapt to market demands and change their cultivation concepts, adhere to the principle of "high-quality varieties, standardized cultivation, mechanized management, large-scale operation, and diversified market", strengthen brand building, and promote the integrated development of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries, so as to promote the change of table grape industry in Henan Province from "quantitative scale model" to "quality benefit model", and promote its sustainable and high-quality development.