Popular Match Insights
Published: May 15, 2026 | By LEYU SPORTS | Source: Official | Views: 1234
Recently, the Ministry of Agriculture decided to organize an apple e-commerce sales month activity nationwide, from April 3rd to May 3rd.
It is reported that Alibaba Group, JD.com, Suning.com Group, and many other e-commerce companies participated in the 'Apple Sales Month Action'. Data released by the Ministry of Agriculture shows that within three days of the launch of the apple e-commerce sales month, Suning has sold 3.075 million kilograms of apples, JD.com has sold 110,000 kilograms, and other e-commerce platforms are also connecting with production areas and fruit farmers.
As a traditional fruit with high nutritional value, suitable for all ages, why did apples encounter 'inventory困' (difficulty) in 2015-2016? How effective is selling apples through online and e-commerce platforms? Recently, a reporter from 'China Science Daily' interviewed relevant parties.
Apple Overstock, Why?
Wang Shuguang, an apple farmer in Dangshan County, Anhui Province, has finally breathed a sigh of relief these past few days. He planted over ten mu of apples. The apples were harvested in mid-September last year, but only half have been sold until recently. 'The overstock situation has eased a bit these past few days. Ground apples are basically finished, and only cold storage apples are left to sell,' he told the reporter from 'China Science Daily'.
In Wang Shuguang's impression, this year's apple prices are the 'cheapest in recent years'. A year ago, during the 2014-2015 sales season, apple prices reached their highest point. 'Last year, apples were sold for 2.6 yuan/jin. This year, they are sold for 7-8 mao.'
Why did local apples experience overstock? Huo Xuexi, a professor at the School of Economics and Management at Northwest A&F University of Science and Technology, told 'China Science Daily' that this is a common problem in the production of high-value agricultural products in China, not just apples.
'In a production situation dominated by labor input, high-value-added agricultural products are very beneficial for increasing farmers' income. Driven by high industrial comparative benefits, farmers' enthusiasm is high, which is the fundamental driving force,' said Huo Xuexi.
'Because fruits like apples have significant benefits for increasing farmers' income, various regions have vigorously promoted their cultivation. Currently, the planting areas for apples are no longer limited to advantageous regions. There is a certain degree of blind planting. The expansion process has led to a significant breakthrough in the boundaries of previously established apple advantage production areas. Some apples are planted in non-suitable or sub-suitable areas, which is also a very important reason,' said Huo Xuexi. In addition, the cost of apple production has also continued to rise over the past decade, especially since 2007.
From the demand side, the income elasticity of apple demand is relatively large. In other words, apples are not like grains, which are necessities. They can be eaten or not. 'As China's economy enters a new normal and people's income growth is relatively slow, domestic demand for apple consumption is insufficient,' said Huo Xuexi. 'At the same time, affected by increased costs, apple exports from production areas have also been impacted.'
According to a previous report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, China's apple production in 2015-2016 was predicted to be 43 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 5%. At the same time, it was predicted that China's imported fruit would increase by 50% this year, reaching 100,000 tons.
In addition, fruit farmers' 'hoarding' is also one of the reasons for the current overstock in some areas. Wang Shuguang revealed to reporters that because last year's apple prices were very high, many local fruit farmers hoped to sell their apples at the same high price when harvesting this year. This led to a 'reluctance to sell' mentality, resulting in a significant decrease in the number of purchasing merchants and sales volume.
Apples Are Still Not Cheap, Why?
While Wang Shuguang's apples are selling at historical low prices, the apple prices in the market seem to be unaffected.
A reporter's visit to several supermarkets in Beijing found that apples priced at 4-5 yuan/jin are the average price, while apples with better appearance still maintain high prices. Many netizens also said that although there are large quantities of apples at low prices in production areas, the apples they eat 'still cost several yuan each.'
According to the national apple market price information provided by the China Fruit Circulation Association, on April 1, 2016, the national wholesale average price of Fuji apples (200mm, Grade II and above) was 6.99 yuan/kg, and on April 12, this price was 6.24 yuan/kg.
The reporter learned that apples go through multiple stages from the tree to the sales terminal, including agents, packing, transportation, storage, wholesale, and merchants, and each stage incurs costs.
'Our logistics costs are very high, accounting for about 17% of the terminal sales price. In European and American countries, this proportion is 7%-8%,' Huo Xuexi told the reporter.
Although e-commerce sales, which go directly from the production area to the consumer, reduce some steps, the logistics costs for cold chain and delivery are very high. A market manager from a well-known e-commerce platform also revealed to reporters that when transporting fresh produce like apples, packaging materials must be used to ensure cold and fresh preservation, with packaging costs ranging from 4 to 8 yuan. In the delivery stage, the 'last mile' delivery cost from centralized warehouses to consumers is also extremely high.
In addition to logistics costs, real estate and labor costs in large and medium-sized city retail channels are also reasons for the high selling price of apples at the consumer end. In other words, the high store rents and personnel expenses are all included in the selling price of apples.
Furthermore, according to media reports, although the state does not allow supermarkets to charge entry fees or stocking fees for agricultural products, in practice, if entering a supermarket or wholesale market, there are stall fees and entry fees, which are still default unavoidable expenses.
All these costs are ultimately passed on to consumers, causing the price of apples from the fields to skyrocket after several transfers to reach the hands of consumers.
E-commerce Promotion of Apples, Feasible?
About 20 days ago, it was the most severe period of apple overstock in Dangshan County. Seeing apples rotting in the fields, fruit farmers were extremely anxious. 'Some fruit farmers had only a dozen jin left from a box of 40 jin of apples that rotted,' said Wang Shuguang. Anxious fruit farmers posted information about apple overstock on Weibo, WeChat, etc., and he was one of them. At the same time, he also sold apples through online channels such as micro-stores and WeChat moments.
'The effect is quite significant,' said Wang Shuguang. 'Now goods are moving through various channels, with large trucks coming to pick them up, express delivery, and all sorts of methods.'
It is reported that Dangshan County has an apple planting area of 100,000 mu. Early and mid-season varieties of 40,000 mu have been sold out. Late-season Fuji varieties of 60,000 mu have a yield of about 150 million kilograms, and these are the apples that have not yet been sold.
From the perspective of natural conditions, Dangshan, a 'hometown of fruits,' is a sub-optimal growing area for apples. Compared to advantageous areas, the quality of its fruits is not superior, making it difficult to sell at high prices in the market.
'Dangshan's apple planting area is not large, and it is already a weak industry with insufficient conditions for brand cultivation. As for improving apple quality, because the low-end market was also profitable in previous years, fruit farmers lacked the motivation to change,' said Zhu Qigao, director of the Dangshan County Apple Industry Development Service Center. When apple prices were high, apples from Luochuan and Yantai could generally be sold for 8-9 yuan/jin, while the highest purchase price for Dangshan apples was no more than 4 yuan/jin.
In fact, nationwide, apples produced in advantageous areas, with good quality and well-known brands, are selling very well and have been largely sold out. Although prices have fallen back, the decline is not significant, representing a 'normal return' of prices.
The current 'tough nut to crack' in apple sales is mostly in sub-optimal areas, or in advantageous areas but with poor management and operation. Various reasons have caused these apples to experience large price drops and poor sales.
The 'Apple E-commerce Sales Month Action' organized by the Ministry of Agriculture aims to solve a large part of the sales of these types of apples. According to the issued notice, this activity aims to further promote the Ministry of Agriculture's relevant agricultural e-commerce action plan and fully leverage the important role of e-commerce in precisely matching supply and demand, reducing circulation costs, and promoting agricultural supply-side reform. Participating e-commerce platforms will operate on the principle of breaking even with small profits and multi-party win-win, allowing fruit farmers in apple production areas and consumers to share the achievements of 'Internet + Agricultural E-commerce'.
Regarding organizing e-commerce sales of apples, some industry insiders told reporters that it is a 'good thing' for fruit farmers, but how to ensure quality control is crucial.
The reporter opened the apple sales page of an e-commerce platform and found that the lowest selling price for apples was 4 yuan/jin, and consumer reviews included negative feedback such as 'all rotten' and 'mushy.'
'For e-commerce, product quality and building trust are very important,' an expert who wished to remain anonymous told reporters. 'The intention to help sell apples is good, but it may be difficult to truly solve the problem.' (Hu Xuanzi)