Yangguan Seedless White Grapes

Yangguan Seedless White Grapes

　　Yangguan Town in Dunhuang City, Gansu Province, is situated at the foot of the ancient Yangguan Pass, 64 kilometers southwest of downtown Dunhuang. It is the most remote township in Dunhuang. Since ancient times, it has been the gateway to the Western Regions and a vital pass on the southern route of the Silk Road. The town enjoys a prime location with vast land and abundant natural resources, including water, sunlight, fertile soil, heat, as well as diverse wildlife and tourism assets. Its agricultural production conditions are highly favorable. Thanks to the excellent quality of its spring water, its distance from urban areas, and the absence of pollutants, it is an ideal place for producing pollution-free food.

　　Leveraging its advantages in sunlight, heat, water, and soil resources, Yangguan Town has vigorously developed its grape industry. The total planted area of grapes in the town has reached 20,000 mu, with the Seedless White Grape being the primary variety, alongside more than twenty other new and premium varieties such as Seedless White Chicken Heart, Centennial Seedless, Liza, and Red Globe. In 2003, the town registered a grape brand trademark and obtained “Green Food” certification. The grapes are sold to over 20 provinces and cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, Hubei, Guangzhou, and Fujian, where they are highly favored by consumers.

　　To enhance the organization level of the grape production base, the Yangguan Town Grape Production and Sales Management Association was established in 2003. Five branch associations were also set up under the town’s village party branches, forming a new party-building model called “Party Branch + Association.” This model is based on farmers, supported by the industry, carried out through professional associations, and aimed at enriching the people. The Grape Association has played a significant role in adjusting the industrial structure, improving grape quality, developing deep-processing projects, regulating market sales order, safeguarding the interests of all parties, increasing farmers’ income, and strengthening the influence of the Party Branch. To further mitigate the market and natural risks associated with grape sales and alleviate the pressure of short concentrated sales periods during the grape ripening season, in recent years, Yangguan Town has actively developed fresh grape storage and deep-processing projects through financing, leading entrepreneurs, and corporate self-raising. A total of 13 large and medium-sized grape constant-temperature storage facilities and 20 household constant-temperature storages have been built, bringing the town’s fresh grape storage capacity to 9,000 tons. At the same time, projects such as chocolate raisins and grape packaging material factories have been established. In 2009, an investment of over 10 million yuan was introduced to build a grape juice extraction plant with an annual production capacity of 3,600 tons, effectively extending the grape industry chain and increasing farmers’ income. In 2010, through active cooperation with wine companies in Penglai and Yantai, Shandong Province, two additional grape juice extraction plants were built, bringing the town’s total grape juice production capacity to 9,000 tons. This has laid a solid foundation for effectively addressing grape sales issues, promoting product value-added transformation, and enhancing the level of industrialization.