ZIYANG, China, Oct. 18, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On October 18, 2024, the 5th World Lemon Industry Development Conference, organized by the People's Government of Anyue County, kicked off in Anyue County, Sichuan Province, China. More than 300 industry experts, research institute representatives, company delegates and industry professions from nations and regions along the "Belt and Road" gathered in Anyue to discuss about and exchange views on matters such as lemon variety enhancement, nutrition and health, development and application, and foreign trade and sales.
This year's Lemon Industry Development Conference consists of three major segments, namely the opening ceremony, on-site visits, and the 2024 Sichuan Vocational Skill Competition & Sichuan-Chongqing Lemon Skill Competition.
During the opening ceremony, Anyue County has specially set up a display area to showcase a wide array of products made from lemon including lemon drinks, lemon alcohols and lemon snacks in a centralized way. "We hope that the on-site product display area will exhibit the R&D achievements of the fine and deep processing of Anyue lemon in a more multi-faceted and multi-dimensional manner," a person in charge of the Conference explained.
After the opening ceremony, the guests will visit the sites of Rural Digital Business Center for Cold Chain Storage in Anyue County, Anyue Cold Chain Storage and Rural Village Digitized Commercial Center, Sichuan Weiji Fruit Co., Ltd. and the Lemon Science and Technology Demonstration Park in Tongxian Town to learn more about the production, sales and other aspects related to the local lemon industry.
In addition, the 2024 Sichuan Vocational Skill Competition & Sichuan-Chongqing Lemon Skill Competition, a supplementary activity of this year's conference, will take place in the the Baosen Lemon Tourist Area in Anyue County on November 4-5. Anyue County will organize lemon industry workers from Sichuan and Chongqing to partake in skill theory exams and practical skill competitions in lemon tree pruning and lemon classification and packing, to promote communication, improve the technical abilities of the participants, elevate the brand exposure of Anyue lemon, and expand brand influence.
Located in Ziyang, Sichuan, China, Anyue County is one of the world's five leading areas for lemon producing planting, and also the only lemon production base in China. Therefore, it is dubbed the "Hometown of Lemons" in China.
Since the introduction of lemon cultivation in the 1920s, Anyue has been dedicated to the planting of lemon for nearly a century and succeeded in breeding Anyue lemon, a new variety of Eureka lemon well-known for its exceptional quality. Thanks to the humid and warm climate, geographical advantages brought by the hilly area and optimal soil conditions, Anyue lemon has been proved to possess more citric acid, vitamin C, anti-oxidants and other nutriments compared to most other counterparts, making it a top choice for both direct consumption and further processing. In turn, Anyue has become one of the regions most suitable for lemon growth.
In recent years, Anyue County has constantly improved its lemon provenance supply chain, base planting chain, industrial processing chain, and marketing and sales chain, basically having built a development system that incorporates R&D, cultivation, processing and sales of lemons. These achievements are included in the List of Geographical Indication Protection Projects in 2024 published by the China National Intellectual Property Administration. It's worth noting that Anyue County, by drawing on the lemon industry, has been actively exploring the ways to integrate lemon and tourism, and culture and industry. With these efforts, Anyue County has built the lemon theme park, Anyue Lemon Scenic Area, numerous lemon-themed restaurants and other items which have attracted a large number of tourists.
In 2023, Anyue lemon registered export value of up to 128 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 78%. Between January and August this year, the export value of Anyue lemon amounted to 110 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 170.4%, ranking first in Sichuan Province in terms of export volume of a single product. Anyue lemon has been sold to 38 countries in Eastern Europe, Middle East and other regions.
Source: The People's Government of Anyue County
