Fuyuan Konjac

Fuyuan Konjac

Fuyuan Konjac is a geographical indication certification trademark.

Fuyuan Konjac is a product with a geographical indication for agricultural products.

　　Konjac, also known as devil’s tongue, is a perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Amorphophallus in the Araceae family. There are about 170 species worldwide, mainly distributed in Asia and Africa. China has abundant konjac resources, with over 20 varieties. Yunnan, known as the “Kingdom of Plants” due to its unique geographical environment and climate, has 17 konjac varieties, accounting for 63% of the national konjac germplasm resources. Fuyuan mainly cultivates the flower konjac variety, which is of high quality and excellent color, regarded as premium by konjac producers. It once set a record yield of up to 11 metric tons per mu.

　　The Chinese nation was among the first to research and utilize konjac. As early as the Western Han Dynasty, the “Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica” first identified konjac as a medicinal herb. Records of its use in medicine and as famine food during lean years can be found from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties. The “Compendium of Materia Medica” systematically describes the ecological environment, cultivation methods, therapeutic functions, administration, and processing techniques of konjac. The modern “Compendium of Materia Medica” also affirms that konjac, as a traditional Chinese medicine, has detoxifying, antibacterial, phlegm-resolving, mass-dissipating, and stasis-resolving properties. The traditional way of consuming konjac in China is to manually process fresh konjac or konjac angles into a gray-black konjac tofu. However, this traditional method often involves heavy alkali usage, which affects the health benefits of konjac.

　　The active component of konjac is glucomannan, contained in the tuber. From the anatomical structure of the tuber, it contains a large number of large idioblasts, which hold glucomannose. By removing the starch and other components around the idioblasts, a crude product of glucomannan—konjac flour—can be obtained. Further purification and refinement of konjac flour yields konjac micro powder, which is of higher quality and more convenient to use.

　　Konjac glucomannan is a high-molecular polysaccharide with various physicochemical properties such as water solubility, thickening, stabilization, suspension, gelation, film formation, and adhesion. As a result, konjac is widely used in industries such as medicine, food, drilling, papermaking, building materials, dyeing, daily chemicals, and environmental protection.

　　Before the 1990s, Fuyuan konjac was still grown sporadically. After the 1990s, with the increasing development and utilization of konjac products and rising domestic and international market demand, towns such as Laochang and Funong in Fuyuan County began large-scale contiguous cultivation. Towns such as Huangnihe, Shibalianshan, and Mohong also made moderate-scale use of idle land, achieving good economic returns. In 1998, the county planted 1,134 mu of flower konjac.

　　In 2001, at the Fifth Plenary Session of the Ninth County Committee, konjac was listed as one of the featured economic crops. Leadership over konjac production was strengthened, technical guidance and financial support were increased, and Fuyuan konjac entered a period of vigorous development. In 2001, the county planted 11,000 mu of flower konjac, yielding a total of 52.77 million kg of fresh konjac, generating an output value of 38.18 million yuan. In 2002, 15,800 mu were planted, yielding 71.10 million kg of fresh konjac, with an output value of 49.77 million yuan. In 2003, the plan was to plant 20,000 mu of konjac, and by 2007, the county’s konjac planting area would reach 50,000 mu, making it the largest konjac production, processing, and sales hub in the province. With the improvement of people’s material life and health standards, the prospects of the konjac industry will become even broader, and it is set to become a sunrise industry of the 21st century.

　　Geographic Scope

　　Fuyuan konjac is produced within Fuyuan County, Qujing City, Yunnan Province, covering 11 towns and townships: Zhong’an Town, Housuo Town, Mohong Town, Dahe Town, Yingshang Town, Zhuanyuan Town, Funong Town, Huangnihe Town, Shibalianshan Town, Laochang Town, and Gugan Township. Geographic coordinates: between 103°58′ to 104°49′ east longitude and 25°02′ to 25°58′ north latitude, spanning 48.8 km from east to west and 91.5 km from north to south. The planting area covers 10,000 hectares, with an annual output of 200,000 metric tons and 10,000 metric tons of refined flour.