Mangos raise money

Renhe town in Lijiang city of Yunnan province plans to invest 1.6 million yuan ($236,000) on adding 10,000 mu (667 hectares) mango planting areas in 2017.

In order to boost the local mango industry, Renhe town raised a total of 1.35 million yuan to hand out free high-quality mango seedlings to villagers in 2016.

By the end of 2016, over 20,000 mu of mango fields have been cultivated, bringing local villagers with production value of 5.4 million yuan.

A farmer picks a huge mango in Lijiang, Yunnan province. [Photo/Yunnan.cn]

Zi Wenchao, head of Renhe town, said, "We plan to generate 10,000 mu of mango field each year in 2017 and 2018, and 5,000 mu each year in 2019 and 2020. A total planting area of 50,000 mu mango field is expected to see by 2020."

According to Zi Wenchao, the town enjoys a great location for planting mango trees, where is rich with lights and rains. The mangoes are famous around the country for being exceptionally sweet, with an average sugar content greater than 22.5 percent.

A bumper mango harvest in Lijiang, Yunnan province. [Photo/Yunnan.cn]

"We never worry about sales. Almost all our mangos are sold to Hainan province," said Zhang Guocai, a local large mango producer who developed 1,200 mu mango fields.

Zhang employed more than 20 people in his mango base for daily operation. During the mango-picking period, 150 farmers are needed per day.

Farmers pick ripe mangoes in Lijiang, Yunnan province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]