Rushan: Strawberry Industry Paves Path to Prosperity for Growers

RUSHAN, China, Feb. 7, 2024 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/–

On January 29, at the Weihai Guangyuanhong Agricultural Cooperative in Rushanzhai Town of Rushan, fruit growers were busy picking strawberries. Boxes of strawberries were waiting to be shipped to supermarkets in cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.

At the moment, it is the very season for strawberries to hit the market. The Rushanzhai Town, known as the “Town of Strawberry,” presents a bustling scene of harvest. In recent years, Rushan City has highlighted the concept of “strawberry+”. Leveraging its industrial advantage with 4,000 mu of strawberry, it has promoted park-based development, actively introducing the most advanced growing modes and technologies from home and abroad to facilitate the large-scale, standardized and brand-based development of the strawberry industry.

The city has planned agriculture with an industrialization concept and implemented a park-based approach to farming. Rushan has introduced modern agricultural projects such as Songhui Horticulture and Guangyuanhong to target high-end strawberry markets, striving to develop industrial chains such as growing, seedling breeding, sorting and packaging, sightseeing and picking and encouraging major growers to expand strawberry cultivation.

To date, it has introduced and bred over 20 new strawberry varieties such as Fragrant Wild, Angel and Light Snow. With over 500,000 seedlings grown, the annual strawberry yield exceeds 30,000 kg. Among them, Songhui Horticulture has collaborated with leading Japanese strawberry enterprises to enhance breeding and cultivation techniques, contributing to the establishment of an extensive and diversified system for technology promotion within the strawberry-growing community.

Meanwhile, Rushan maximizes the leadership of key enterprises, forming cooperatives centered on them and actively engaging major growers and villagers. Employing a unified approach to breeding, seedling management, procurement, technology, and marketing, it fosters collective growth. This strategy annually saves strawberry growers over 400,000 yuan in investment costs while boosting household income by 15,000 yuan, creating a mutually beneficial scenario for all stakeholders.

Source: Information Office of Rushan Municipal People’s Government