TIANJIN, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Liu Fang added a box of Chilean cherries to her shopping cart in north China's Tianjin Municipality on Wednesday morning. Thanks to rapid logistics, the imported fruit was still fresh after arriving at Tianjin Port the night before.

 

The port has launched a new direct shipping route to facilitate cherry imports from Chile -- the first direct shipping service for Latin American cherries bound for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

 

Previously, cherries sold in northern China were transported mainly by highway after entering China through ports in the south or by air, leading to relatively high overall logistics costs.

 

Zhang Lei, general manager of a Tianjin Port Group logistics company, said that thanks to the new shipping route, it takes less than five hours for Chilean cherries to reach all major fruit and vegetable wholesale markets in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

 

Fruit retail company Pagoda estimates that its outlets in the region will see the overall price of Chilean cherries drop by 50 percent thanks to the new route.

 

Shipping time is a critical factor in the transportation of fresh fruits, which do not have long shelf lives.

 

Due to significant transport distances and high requirements to maintain freshness, direct cherry logistics is a recognized benchmark in the fruit transportation industry, as they put port management and the convenience of customs clearance to the test, Zhang said.

 

Tianjin Customs has provided a green customs channel for fresh and perishable agricultural products, allowing advance customs clearance and direct unloading at the dock, according to local customs officer Qiu Dong.

 

Over the past seven years, Chilean cherry exports to China have grown at an approximate annual average rate of 29 percent. The Chilean Fruit Exporters Association estimates that more than 85 percent of Chilean cherries will be exported to China this season.

 

The growing demand of the Chinese market has spurred the expansion of Chile's cherry planting area and benefited local farmers. From 2000 to 2022, the total cherry planting area in Chile grew from 3,241 hectares to 61,559 hectares, according to data from Chile's Office of Agricultural Studies and Policies.

 

China is Chile's biggest trading partner, its top export destination, and its leading source of imports.

 

Chile was the first Latin American country to sign a free trade agreement with China. In 2017, the free trade agreement was upgraded, increasing the proportion of zero-tariff products to 98 percent.

 

The cherry is a star product in the trade between the two countries. The cherry harvest coincides with China's traditional Spring Festival, creating near-perfect trade conditions.

 

Chilean cherries have become increasingly popular among Chinese consumers over the years. "Over 1,840 tonnes of the cherries we imported in this shipment have already been pre-sold," said Wei Shujian, president of Chilean cherry importer Hebei Sunhola Group.

 

"Another two vessels carrying about 5,800 tonnes of Chilean cherries are expected to arrive at the Tianjin port in the next seven days, providing fresh fruits for Chinese consumers ahead of the Lunar New Year," said Zhang with the Tianjin Port Group.