Longji Chili

Longji Chili

Longji chili is a product with a geographical indication.

　　 Longji chili is grown in the misty mountains above 800 meters elevation in the Longji Rice Terraces scenic area of Longsheng County, Guilin, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The chilies are horn-shaped, vibrant in color, thick-fleshed with few seeds, intensely spicy, and uniquely fragrant. In addition to being rich in capsaicin and volatile aromatic oils, they also contain a variety of vitamins essential to the human body. They are appetizing, refreshing, warming, dehumidifying, and appetite-enhancing, making them an excellent condiment and one of the “Four Treasures of Longji.”

　　Longji chilies have a bright reddish hue and offer a perfect balance of spice, aroma, and flavor.

　　The full growth cycle lasts 180–210 days. The plants grow 80–95 cm tall with a spread of about 44.2 cm. The fruit is 6.5–8.5 cm long, 1.5 cm wide, 0.2 cm thick, and weighs 6–7.5 g per piece. With high yields of 1,200–1,500 kg per mu, the fruit is a short, pointed chili—bright red, firm, glossy-skinned, unwrinkled, thick-fleshed, crisp, pleasantly spicy, and uniquely flavorful. Besides being consumed fresh, it can be processed into dried chilies, chili powder, chili oil, chili sauce, and pickled sour chilies. Fresh, finished, and semi-finished products are sold all over China. Longsheng County plants over 50,000 mu of Longji chilies annually, with an output of more than 25,000 tons.

　　Planting Scale

　　“Longji Chili” is a specialty agricultural product grown in the high-altitude terraces of Longsheng Various Nationalities Autonomous County, Guilin, Guangxi. It has over 200 years of selective breeding and cultivation history, involving 33 processes from seed selection to drying. Despite its premium quality, due to the remote and underdeveloped mountain terraces, sales channels have been limited, preventing farmers from fully benefiting from this historic “golden brand.”

　　To change this situation, the Longsheng County Administration for Industry and Commerce has actively promoted initiatives such as “Red Shield Protecting Farmers,” “Brokers Vitalizing Agriculture,” “Policy Assisting Farmers,” and “Trademarks Boosting Agriculture,” focusing on both guidance and service. These efforts aim to improve the yield and quality of “Longji Chili,” expand its market, achieve industrial upgrading, and increase farmers’ income. On one hand, they organize well-known local agricultural supply companies to sell directly in villages and hold exhibitions of high-quality agricultural inputs to help farmers purchase products from certified manufacturers. On the other hand, they carry out “anti-counterfeiting to protect farmers” campaigns, conducting awareness activities in villages on identifying genuine and fake agricultural supplies, intensifying inspections, organizing targeted monitoring of fertilizer and pesticide quality in the distribution chain, and ensuring proper sampling and testing to guarantee product quality. A consumer rights service station has been set up at the Longji Terraces, hiring village committee staff as liaisons to provide fixed-point protection services. These measures ensure the safety of the breeding, cultivation, and scaled production of Longji chilies. The planted area of fresh Longji chilies has reached 3,900 mu, with yields of around 1,000 kg per mu.

　　During the annual harvest season, bright red chilies are spread out to dry in front of and behind farmers’ homes. To help sell these high-quality chilies, officials from the Longsheng County Administration for Industry and Commerce have actively cultivated a team of brokers dealing in Longji chilies and other agricultural products, guiding the establishment of the Longji Chili Brokers Association. They assist the association in formulating and improving industry standards, establishing mutual aid mechanisms, promoting contract farming, thereby strengthening the broker network, energizing sales methods, and broadening distribution channels. In Heping Town, a major production and sales hub for Longji chilies, there are 79 brokers primarily dealing in Longji chilies. Sales channels for “Longji Chili” are now smooth, attracting clients not only from Hunan and Guangdong but also opening up international markets in Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam and Laos. The price of “Longji Chili” has risen from 25 yuan per kilogram to 30 yuan, bringing tangible benefits to farmers.

　　To support the development of the chili industry and promote the professionalization, standardization, scaling, and intensification of Longji chili production and management, the Longsheng County Administration for Industry and Commerce has also vigorously assisted the development of the Mahai Village Farmers' Professional Cooperative in Heping Township, following the working principle of “government support, departmental guidance, and market operation.” They provide detailed explanations and guidance to villagers who come for consultation, even working overtime to complete registration reviews in just one day instead of the usual three. After successful registration, they further guided Mahai Village in building its brand. The Longji chili has successfully registered the “Longji Chili” trademark, marking the first step toward solving the issue of the lack of branded chili operations.

　　Geographical Indication

　　Geographical Scope

　　The protected area for Longji chili is located in the northeastern part of Guangxi, the northwestern part of Guilin City, at the southwestern foot of the Yuechengling Mountain Range on the border between Hunan and Guangxi. It borders Xing’an and Ziyuan to the east, Lingchuan and Lingui to the south, Rong’an and Sanjiang to the west, and Hunan’s Chengbu to the north, and connects with Hunan’s Tongdao to the northwest. It spans a maximum north-south distance of 78 km and a maximum east-west distance of 60 km, with elevations ranging from 236 to 1,940 meters. The geographical indication protection area for Longji chili as an agricultural product includes ten towns and their 119 administrative villages: Heping Township, Longsheng Town, Sishui Township, Jiangdi Township, Madi Township, Weijiang Township, Pingdeng Township, Lejiang Township, Piaoli Town, and Sanmen Town. The protected area lies between 25°29′21″N to 26°12′14″N latitude and 109°43′05″E to 110°21′24″E longitude, covering a growing area of 4,000 hectares with a yield of up to 30,000 tons.

　　Product Quality Characteristics

　　(1) External Sensory Characteristics: Mature fresh chilies are short, horn-shaped, 5.5–9.5 cm long, with a shoulder diameter of 1.2–2.0 cm, weighing 5.0–8.6 g each. They have a flesh thickness of 0.11–0.16 cm, 2–3 locules, many seeds, bright red and glossy skin, firm texture, crispy flesh with moderate spiciness, and good storage and transportability. Dried chilies are 5.0–8.5 cm long, weighing 1.2–1.7 g each, with dark red, wrinkled skin, compact fruit, intense spiciness with fragrance, and unique flavor. Primarily consumed dried. (2) Internal Quality Indicators: Key content indicators for Longji chilies include: Fresh chili: dry matter ≥22.0%, crude fiber ≥9.4%, vitamin C ≥57.1 mg/100g, capsaicin ≥400 mg/kg; Dried chili: dry matter ≥90.7%, crude fiber ≥22.6%, vitamin C ≥13.0 mg/100g, capsaicin ≥1.74×10³ mg/kg. (3) Safety Requirements: The growing environment of Longji chilies strictly complies with the “NY5010-2002 Pollution-Free Vegetable Growing Environment Conditions.” The product meets the “NY5005-2008 Pollution-Free Solanaceous Vegetables” standard. (4) Packaging: Use clean woven bags, jute bags, or other materials that meet food packaging requirements. All packaging materials must be clean, hygienic, dry, non-toxic, odorless, free from harmful substances, oil stains, mold, coal dust, lime, rust, soil, water stains, etc. All packaging should be secure and leak-proof. (5) Storage: Finished products must not be stored outdoors. Proper moisture and damp-proofing measures must be taken. The storage warehouse must be clean, dry, ventilated, and free of rodents and pests. Finished products must not be stored together with toxic, harmful, spoiled, or foul-smelling items. (6) Transportation: Transport vehicles must be clean and hygienic. They must not be loaded or transported together with toxic or harmful goods. Vehicle compartments or cargo holds that previously carried fertilizers, pesticides, or other hazardous chemicals must be thoroughly cleaned before use. Transport must avoid exposure to rain.