The China Tongnan Lemon Industry Development Conference was held in Tongnan district of Chongqing Municipality, with 37 new investment deals totaling 27.7 billion yuan signed.

The China Tongnan Lemon Industry Development Conference held in Tongnan district, Chongqing Municipality, Nov. 6, 2023. [Photo courtesy of CQNEWS.net]

"At present, Tongnan is actively seizing major historic opportunities with a strong focus on promoting the comprehensive development, extension, and strengthening of the entire lemon industry chain. We aim to be at the forefront of China's rural revitalization," said Wen Tianping, Tongnan district's Party secretary, in his speech. He hopes the conference will serve as a practical step in accelerating the modernization of agriculture and rural areas, becoming an important platform for showcasing and exchanging global lemon industry knowledge.

Wen also extended an invitation to experts and scholars in the field to collaborate with them, aiming to collectively advance and facilitate the transformation of more lemon technology achievements, and strengthen and extend the industrial chain.

The data shows that the current lemon cultivation area in Tongnan has reached 320,000 mu (approximately 53,000 acres). In 2022, Tongnan produced 280,000 tons of fresh lemons and over 400 lemon-related products. These were exported to more than 30 countries and regions, accounting for over 40% of China's lemon exports, with an annual total output value exceeding 6 billion yuan, firmly establishing itself as the country's top lemon brand.

The local government is committed to making "Tongnan Lemon" the nation's No. 1 lemon brand by focusing on large-scale industry, advanced processing, cutting-edge technology, and a strong brand presence. Efforts include introducing key enterprises for advanced lemon processing, promoting innovation and genetic resource utilization, and establishing a leading national lemon seedling breeding center while enhancing the brand's reputation and market share.

The 37 deals signed are related to Tongnan Lemon's export to South Asia markets and the entire industry chain, involving enterprises and organizations from China, South Korea, Mongolia and Malaysia. These agreements aim to boost cooperation and expand domestic and international markets, industry chains, financing, and more, covering various areas such as food processing, intelligent manufacturing, and big data.

At the conference, Tongnan district, representing Chongqing, forged extensive cooperation pacts with lemon-producing regions in Sichuan, Hainan, and Yunnan provinces. Together, these areas, taking advantage of their strategic locations, plan to establish a core technological innovation matrix for the global lemon industry. Led by key enterprises, agricultural social service organizations, and farmer cooperatives, they aim to boost industry-technology synergy. Their cooperation involves building a billion-level lemon industry science and innovation cluster for comprehensive development, setting unified ecological standards for the entire Chinese lemon industry chain, and establishing a national-level lemon industry science and innovation platform.

A farmer picking lemons in Tongnan. [Photo courtesy of Tongnan District Publicity Department]

This collaboration will boost China's presence in the global lemon industry by attracting foreign talent and capital, supporting domestic companies in international expansion, and promoting technology sharing. In addition, they will establish a joint system for agricultural cooperation meetings, where senior officials from the agricultural and rural sectors in the four regions mentioned above will work together on key issues, coordinate solutions, and create shared resources for agricultural information, product exhibitions, and investment promotion, facilitating cooperation among emerging agricultural businesses.

The conference also launched a new digital platform to empower the local lemon industry, released the "Chinese Lemon Industry Development Research Report 2023," and held a summit forum where experts provided development recommendations for Tongnan's lemon industry.