“Daring to Be the Freshest”: our film in 4½ minutes

60% of the imported fruit cleared at the world’s ports for China arrives here first. The market trades about 2.3 million tonnes of fruit worth CNY 30 billion a year, handles 60% of China’s imported-fruit trade and has ranked among China’s top ten fruit wholesale markets for many consecutive years.

This is Jiangnonghui Market on Zengcha Road in Guangzhou’s Baiyun District — the largest fruit wholesale market in South China and one of the largest imported-fruit hubs in the world. Fruit that lands here is redistributed rapidly to secondary and tertiary wholesale markets across China, keeping it as fresh as possible.

The market’s promotional film, “Daring to Be the Freshest”, has spread widely on social media, surprising many local residents who had not realised such a remarkable market was right on their doorstep.

What the film shows

In four and a half minutes, the film follows 20 years of the market’s search for freshness: gathering fruit that has crossed mountains and oceans, then delivering it safely to households as fast as possible. The secret is demanding standards of market management.

Scale: 220,000 m² and over 1,000 merchants

The 220,000 m² trading area is divided into Southeast Asian, western-import and domestic premium fruit zones. More than 1,000 merchants trade from 1,087 shops and 1,200 rotating trading spots, selling fruit container by container rather than from fixed stalls. Over 80 kinds of fruit are traded; durian, cherries and grapes lead with 360,000, 180,000 and 130,000 tonnes a year, worth CNY 9.7, 8 and 2 billion respectively.

The market’s price index is transparent and stable, with prices updated in real time every day so traders work on a level playing field.

The secret: infrastructure and software

The market has business offices, parking, cold storage and forklift crews that meet national standards, plus three dedicated dual-circuit substations for uninterrupted power. Its smart fruit platform already handles property leasing, cold-chain storage billing, a cargo database and cargo temperature control digitally.

Responsibility: supporting rural revitalisation

Guided by Party building, the market supports China’s rural revitalisation strategy and has made repeated charitable donations in support of Guangdong’s high-quality development.

Following its principles of “service first, integrity first, efficiency first”, the market will keep working with its partners to keep China’s — and the world’s — fruit bowl full.