Dongping Banjiudian Garlic

Dongping Banjiudian Garlic

　　Banjiudian Town is bordered by the Yellow River to the west and Dongping Lake to the east. The area consists of alluvial plains formed by the Yellow River, featuring fertile soil and abundant water resources—ideal conditions for growing garlic. The local variety evolved from Soviet hybrid garlic introduced in the 1960s, with planting scale expanding year by year. By 2001, the town’s garlic cultivation area reached 40,500 mu, and including adjacent towns, the total area had reached 105,000 mu.

　　　 Banjiudian garlic is renowned for its large bulbs, premium quality, and fragrant taste. Its outer skin is light purplish-red, with plump, uniform cloves. The plants are vigorous and tall-growing, yielding high quantities of garlic scapes, though they are less cold-resistant and relatively early-maturing. The garlic has a moderate spiciness, making it an excellent aromatic vegetable and seasoning. It helps stimulate appetite, inhibit pathogens, improve microcirculation, provide nutrition, and support overall health. According to analysis, every 100 grams of garlic contains 4.4 grams of protein, 0.2 grams of fat, 23 grams of carbohydrates, 0.7 grams of crude fiber, 5 milligrams of calcium, 44 milligrams of phosphorus, 0.4 milligrams of iron, 0.24 milligrams of thiamine, 0.03 milligrams of riboflavin, 0.9 milligrams of niacin, 3 milligrams of ascorbic acid, as well as the anti-mutagenic agent selenium and the active compound allicin, which has anti-cancer properties. Modern pharmacological studies have confirmed that garlic has significant inhibitory effects on various pathogenic bacteria, including staphylococcus, pneumococcus, meningococcus, diphtheria bacillus, E. coli, tuberculosis bacillus, and cholera vibrio. It also helps prevent cancer, benefits skin health, lowers blood lipids and cholesterol, and boosts the immune system. In 1991, it was awarded the Ministry of Agriculture’s Quality Agricultural Product Prize, making it the only garlic product in Shandong Province to receive this honor. The area typically produces 25,000 tons of garlic scapes and 200,000 tons of garlic bulbs annually. During harvest season, merchants flock in to purchase the produce, which is then distributed to cities such as Shanghai, Tianjin, Hebei, Liaoning, and Jilin, and exported to countries including Japan, South Korea, Canada, and Germany.