Here comes the summer with litchi flavor. As the number of litchis yielded in various producing areas grows steadily, Guangdong is enjoying a bumper litchi harvest this year.

Guangdong is the representative litchi producing area in China and the world. The litchis produced here top the world in both the output and the number of varieties, with over 1 million tons of litchis yielded every year. Guangdong is also the province with the richest litchi germplasm resources, the most superior varieties, the largest continuous planting areas, the first litchi industry protection regulations, and the largest number of ancient trees preserved.

According to the "2023 Guangdong Litchi Procurement Map", this year, the litchi planting area in Guangdong covers about 4.1 billion mu (about 2.73 billion square meters), while the output of main litchi varieties has also increased, with the province's total output expected to reach 1.55 million tons.

Among the rich varieties of Guangdong litchi, 'Feizixiao' boasts the highest yield, accounting for about 29% of the total; while Gaozhou City tops the province with its 280,000 tons of litchi output, followed by Lianjiang City and Dianbai District of Maoming City.

Currently, the litchis available on the market are mainly from western Guangdong, most of which are among the varieties of 'Feizixiao', 'Guiwei', 'Baitangying' and 'Heiye'. In early June, the Pearl River Delta and the Guangzhou region takes over the baton to serve more varieties of litchis including 'Nuomici', 'Yuhebao', 'Xianjinfeng' and 'Huaizhi' besides 'Feizixiao' and 'Guiwei'. And in the last half of June, litchis from eastern Guangdong will all come into the market.

Through the continuous development of the international and domestic markets of Guangdong's agricultural products, Guangdong litchi has already entered the markets of over twenty countries and regions across six continents. As data from Guangdong Sub-admInistration of GACC showed, the export volume of Guangdong Litchi in 2022 hit 170 million RMB, taking up 59.4% of the country's total litchi exports.

With the increasing output of Guangdong litchi, it is estimated that the exports of litchi this year will keep on growing. Even before June, Zhanjiang, Maoming, Guangzhou and other cities have started to send their litchis abroad, bringing the sweetness from Guangdong to the rest of the world and realizing the expectation of "Guangdong litchis known by the whole world".

To help Guangdong litchi go even farther, Guangdong has been taking great pains in the process of litchi picking, packaging and cold-chain transporting. For example, Maoming, one of the main litchi producing areas, is enjoying a rather mature industrial chain, which allows the freshly picked litchis to be transported to the refrigeration houses of the buyers within three hours. Once packaged, these litchis will be sold through the cold chain to everywhere, serving the world with the wonderful fruits from Lingnan.

广东甜蜜，全球共享

荔枝味的夏天又到了。广东荔枝今年迎来大丰收，各产区荔枝生产稳步增长。

世界荔枝看中国，中国荔枝看广东。论产量、论品种，广东荔枝都是独占鳌头，年均产量在100万吨以上。广东也是荔枝种质资源最丰富、优良品种最多、科研实力最强、连片种植面积最大、最先出台荔枝产业保护条例、古树保存数量最多的省份。

根据“2023年广东荔枝采购导图”，今年广东荔枝种植面积约410万亩，主要荔枝品种产量均有所增长。全省预计总产量155万吨。

广东荔枝的品种丰富，产量最高的是妃子笑，约占29%；高州市的荔枝产量在全省各县区中是最多的，达到28万吨，其次是廉江市和电白区。

目前上市的主要是粤西片区的荔枝，多是妃子笑、桂味、白糖罂、黑叶等品种。到6月中上旬，珠三角和广州片区的荔枝将接棒上市，除了妃子笑、桂味，还有糯米糍、玉荷包、仙进奉、怀枝等品种；到6月中下旬，粤东片区的荔枝也将全面上市。

经过近年来广东农产品国际、国内市场的持续培育，如今的广东荔枝销售半径，早已突破地域的界限，走向六大洲20多个国家和地区的市场。来自海关总署广东分署的数据显示，2022年出口广东荔枝1.7亿元，占全国荔枝出口的59.4%。

在2023年广东荔枝增产的前提下，业内估计今年荔枝出口涨幅还会继续增大。早在5月底，湛江、茂名、广州等地出口的荔枝就已经开始陆续发车发船，将来自广东的甜蜜带到世界各地，真正实现“广东荔枝 四海皆知”。

为了助力广东荔枝走得更远，近年来广东荔枝在采摘包装、冷链运输等方面下了苦功。如在荔枝主产区茂名，目前荔枝的产业链已经很成熟。在很多荔枝产区，三个小时内，刚从枝头摘下来的荔枝就能迅速运到采购企业的冷库。打包完成后，这些荔枝就会经由冷链被销往各地，让全球品尝到新鲜的岭南佳果。

文｜羊城晚报全媒体记者 许悦
图｜受访者供图
翻译｜洪婷
责编｜王瑜瑛