White Bridge Garlic

White Bridge Garlic

　　White Bridge Town is the core and main production area of the 150,000-mu garlic planting base in Shanghe County. The town governs 81 administrative villages with a population of 50,000, and its dominant industry is garlic production. Currently, the town has a total of 70,000 mu of garlic fields, yielding 100,000 tons of garlic and 45,000 tons of garlic scapes annually. It is a national "One Village One Product" demonstration town, a provincial-level civilized town, and the only township in Jinan City that specializes entirely in garlic production.

　　There are mainly two varieties of White Bridge Garlic: one is the Cangshan White Skin Garlic, and the other is the Soviet Red Skin Garlic. The Cangshan White Skin Garlic is primarily grown for its scapes, typically yielding about 1,200 jin (600 kg) of scapes and 2,500 jin (1,250 kg) of bulbs per mu. The scapes produced are thick, long, and of high quality, usually over 60 cm in length, with excellent texture and flavor, making them highly favored by consumers. The Soviet Red Skin Garlic is mainly cultivated for its bulbs, yielding around 500 jin (250 kg) of scapes and 3,500 jin (1,750 kg) of bulbs per mu. The bulbs are large, flavorful, typically 6–7 cm in diameter, with a strong, spicy taste. They can be eaten raw, pickled, or processed into garlic slices and garlic juice, offering great market potential.

　　White Bridge Garlic features large, evenly sized cloves, crisp and tender texture, strong spicy flavor, rich nutrition, and excellent storage capability for up to 9 months. The bulbs are attractive in appearance—white with slight red hues—and generally over 5 cm in diameter. They are of high quality and rich in nutrients, containing abundant vitamins, amino acids, proteins, allicin, and carbohydrates. Fresh garlic contains 7.2g of sugar, 5.2g of protein, 10mg of calcium, 12.5mg of phosphorus, 1.3mg of iron, 0.29mg of vitamin B1, 0.06mg of vitamin B2, 0.8mg of niacin, and 7mg of vitamin C per 100g, along with magnesium and other trace elements. High in allicin, it functions as a "plant antibiotic" with broad-spectrum antibacterial properties and low toxicity. In April 2007, the garlic produced in the town was certified by the Ministry of Agriculture's Agricultural Product Quality and Safety Center as a national pollution-free agricultural product. In November 2007, it was recognized as a Grade A Green Food by the China Green Food Development Center. In 2011, "Shanghe Garlic" was awarded a National Geographical Indication Certification Mark.