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Published: May 15, 2026 Author: hth Editor Source: Official Site
Recently, the Ministry of Agriculture decided to organize an apple e-commerce sales month activity nationwide, with sales 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 action, 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" in 2015-2016? How effective is selling apples through online and e-commerce platforms? Recently, a reporter from "China Science Daily" interviewed relevant issues.
Apple Overstock, Why?
Apple farmer Wang Shuguang in Dangshan County, Anhui Province has finally breathed a sigh of relief these past few days. He planted more than ten mu of apples. The apples were harvested in mid-September last year, but only half of them have been sold until recently. "The overstock situation has eased a bit in the past few days. Ground apples are basically finished, and there are still cold storage apples left to sell," he told a reporter from "China Science Daily".
In Wang Shuguang's impression, this year's apple price is the "cheapest in recent years", while a year ago, during the 2014-2015 sales season, apple prices climbed to their highest point. "Last year, apples were sold for 2.6 yuan/jin, and this year they are sold for 7-8 mao."
Why did local apples become overstocked? Professor Huo Xuexi from the School of Economics and Management at Northwest A&F University, in an interview with "China Science Daily", stated that this is a common "disease" not only in apples but also in the production of high-value agricultural products in China.
"In a production situation dominated by labor input, high value-added agricultural products are very beneficial for increasing farmers' income. Driven by high comparative benefits of the industry, farmers' enthusiasm is relatively high, which is the fundamental driving force," said Huo Xuexi.
Precisely because fruits like apples have obvious benefits for increasing farmers' income, various regions have vigorously promoted their cultivation. Currently, the planting areas for apples are no longer limited to advantageous production areas. "There is a certain degree of blind planting. During the expansion process, the boundaries of previously established advantageous apple production areas have been significantly broken. 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. "In the new normal of China's economic development, when people's income growth is relatively slow, domestic demand for apple consumption is insufficient," said Huo Xuexi. "At the same time, affected by rising costs, apple exports from production areas are also affected."
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 this year would increase by 50% year-on-year, reaching 100,000 tons.
In addition, farmers' "hoarding" is also one of the reasons for the current overstock in some areas. Wang Shuguang revealed to reporters that due to the high selling price of apples last year, many local fruit farmers hoped to sell apples at the same high price when they harvested this year. Therefore, there was a mentality of "reluctance to sell," which led to a significant decrease in the number of purchasing merchants and sales volume.
Apples 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 were the average price, while those with better appearance still maintained high prices. Many netizens also said that although there are a large quantity 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 links from the tree to the sales terminal, including agents, packing, transportation, storage, wholesale, and merchants, and each link incurs costs.
"Our logistics costs are very high, accounting for about 17% of the terminal sales price," Huo Xuexi told reporters. "In European and American countries, this proportion is 7%-8%."
Although e-commerce sales, which go directly from production areas to consumers, reduce some links, 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 process, the cost of the "last mile" delivery from centralized warehouses to consumers is also extremely high.
In addition to logistics costs, real estate and labor costs in retail channels in large and medium-sized cities are also reasons for the high retail price of apples at the consumer end. In other words, the considerable store rent, personnel expenses, etc., are all included in the selling price of apples.
In addition, according to media reports, although the state does not allow supermarkets to charge entry fees or stocking fees for agricultural products, in actual operations, if entering a supermarket or wholesale market, there are stall fees and entry fees, which are still a default unavoidable expense.
All these costs are ultimately passed on to consumers, causing the price of apples from the fields to skyrocket after several transfers before reaching 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 catties left from a box of 40 catties 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 WeChat 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, and express delivery, in all sorts of ways."
It is reported that Dangshan County has an apple planting area of 100,000 mu. 40,000 mu of early and mid-season varieties have been sold out. The late-season Fuji variety has 60,000 mu, with a yield of about 150 million kilograms. The unsold ones currently belong to this category of apples.
From the perspective of natural conditions, Dangshan, a "hometown of fruits," belongs to 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 lacking conditions for brand cultivation. As for improving apple quality, since the low-end market was profitable in previous years, fruit farmers lacked 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 Dangshan apples had a maximum purchase price of no more than 4 yuan/jin.
In fact, nationwide, apples produced in advantageous areas, with good quality and high brand recognition, are selling very well and have been largely sold out. Although prices have fallen back, the decline is not significant, which can be considered 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 led to a large price drop and poor sales for these apples.
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 will operate on the principle of breaking even with small profits and mutual benefit, allowing apple-producing farmers and consumers to share the achievements of "Internet + Agricultural E-commerce."
Regarding the organization of e-commerce sales for apples, some industry insiders told reporters that it is a "good thing" for fruit farmers, but how to do a good job of quality control is crucial.
The reporter opened the apple sales page of an e-commerce platform and found that the lowest selling price of apples was 4 yuan/jin, and consumer reviews included negative comments 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)