Yuhua Garlic

Yuhua Garlic

Yuhua Garlic is a national intangible cultural heritage.

Yuhua Garlic is a geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Dayong Town (formerly Yuhua) is nationally renowned as a major garlic-producing area. It currently has 165,000 mu of arable land. In 2011, the garlic planting area reached 105,000 mu, generating an output value of 886 million yuan. The per capita net income of farmers was 13,800 yuan, accounting for over 87% of the rural per capita net income. At present, the town’s garlic industry has formed an integrated production, processing, and sales system, along with a unified structure combining trade, industry, and agriculture. In 2000, "Yuhua Brand" garlic was certified as green food by the national authorities. In 1999 and 2001, "Yuhua Brand" garlic sprouts were recognized as famous brand products at the China International Agricultural Fair. In 2005, Yuhua Brand garlic was designated as a famous product by the province, and in May 2006, it passed the national standardized garlic production base inspection. At the Pizhou Garlic Festival hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, it was awarded the title of “Top Ten Garlic Producing Towns in China.”

　　Dayong Town (formerly Yuhua) boasts abundant agricultural resources, with a long history of garlic cultivation as a traditional vegetable production base. In recent years, focusing on the garlic specialty economy, the town has actively developed large-scale production bases, maintaining a stable annual garlic planting area of over 100,000 mu. In September 2000, it was certified as a green food production base by the National Green Food Development Center, covering 50,000 mu. In 2001, it was designated by Jiangsu Province as a pollution-free vegetable production base, spanning 105,000 mu. Additionally, the town has promoted high-efficiency, three-dimensional intercropping models centered around garlic. Techniques such as mulch film cultivation, double-season garlic, balanced fertilization for garlic, garlic seed cold storage and vernalization, and control of garlic leaf blight and root maggots have been researched and implemented. Specialized fertilizer for garlic has also been developed. The yield per mu has increased from a few hundred yuan in the past to two to three thousand yuan. In 2001, the town’s garlic base was listed as a provincial pollution-free green food and national standardized garlic production base. Emphasis has also been placed on pollution-free standardized production. In 2009, the town had 55,000 mu of green garlic, with over 3,000 jin (1,500 kg) of straw mulch per mu, using a total of 75,000 tons of straw annually. This not only prevented field straw burning and reduced air pollution but also gradually increased soil organic matter, reduced chemical fertilizer usage, and accelerated the standardization of garlic production in the town.

　　In recent years, Yuhua Town has intensified efforts to develop leading enterprises and promote agricultural industrialization. The town has established a garlic industry group composed of nineteen enterprises, including the main players Lvfeng and Shengxing, fourteen temperature-controlled storage companies, and five garlic processing businesses. The town’s storage capacity exceeds 15,000 tons, with an annual processing capability of 30 tons of garlic oil and 2,000 tons of garlic slices. Products such as fresh garlic sprouts, garlic bulbs, garlic oil, garlic slices, garlic paste, and allicin produced in the town are exported to countries and regions including Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. The town has a garlic production association, with each village having a garlic production branch responsible for coordinating garlic production and sales. Additionally, 36 trading depots and over 350 purchasing and sales points have been established, with more than 20 sales outlets in major cities across the country such as Shanghai and Beijing. There are 5,500 farmer brokers, forming a complete garlic marketing network. The Yuhua Garlic Production Association has been named a key farmers’ cooperative economic organization in the province.

　　In garlic cultivation, the town follows pollution-free and green food standards, implementing standardized production to continuously improve garlic quality. At the same time, the town actively leverages brand effects to enhance market competitiveness. It has successively registered trademarks for garlic bulbs, garlic sprouts, and green garlic under the brands Yuhua, Yusheng, and Yufeng. The Yuhua brand was awarded the title of China Famous Product at the China International Agricultural Fair in 1999, 2000, and 2001. In 2005, Yuhua Brand garlic was recognized as a famous product by Jiangsu Province. In 2011, “Yuhua” Brand Garlic received the geographical indication designation from the National Ministry of Agriculture.

　　Yuhua Garlic

　　Geographic Scope

　　Yuhua Town is located in the eastern part of Dafeng District, Jiangsu Province, west of the Dafeng Port Economic Zone. It covers a total area of 111 square kilometers, with 112,000 mu of arable land. About 90% of the dominant industry area is devoted to garlic. The town has 11 villages and 2 neighborhood committees, with a total population of 43,000. The agricultural output value is 465 million yuan, with a total of 365 million yuan from special economic crops, and a per capita income of 8,500 yuan, of which 6,800 yuan comes from garlic. Garlic is the pillar industry of Yuhua’s agricultural economy. The town’s garlic production area spans 6,700 hectares, with an annual output of 300,000 tons. Yuhua Garlic is distributed throughout the entire town, including 11 villages—Fufeng, Wanfeng, Chaorong, Haifeng, Nanxin, Weiyang, Yuanfeng, Jinfeng, Jinbei, Haifang, and Tianxiang—and 2 neighborhood committees, Yuhua and Fengyu. The geographical coordinates are between 120°30.008′–120°37.571′ east longitude and 32°17.164′–33°09.893′ north latitude, with an elevation of 1.5 meters above sea level.