This year marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan period and represents a critical phase for the high-quality and efficient development of Qingyang's fruit industry. According to a recent municipal work deployment meeting, the year's focus will be on implementing two major projects: the "Upgrading and Transformation of One Million Mu of High-Quality Apple Bases" and the "Brand Cultivation and Enhancement" initiative. These efforts will be driven by three key measures and supported by four types of safeguards, accelerating the apple industry's transition toward modernization, premiumization, and smart technology integration.
The development targets for the fruit industry this year include stabilizing the apple cultivation area at approximately 1.33 million mu, achieving an apple output of over 1.76 million tons, and increasing the total output value of the entire industrial chain to 13.5 billion yuan—a growth of 7.4%. Additionally, the per capita disposable income contributed to farmers is expected to reach 2,700 yuan, reflecting a 9% increase.
Enhancing quality and efficiency forms the core focus of this year's fruit industry work. In terms of varietal improvement, Qingyang is intensifying efforts under the "Ruixue Apple" single-product breakthrough strategy. A 3,000-mu breeding base and scion garden, primarily featuring the "Sanrui" series, has been established, with plans to produce over 2 million qualified seedlings within the year. Simultaneously, supervision of seedling sources will be strengthened to ensure a steady supply of high-quality planting materials for the base transformation project.
The renovation of aging orchards is a crucial step to revitalize the industry. Qingyang will continue advancing the "One Million Mu High-Quality Apple Base Upgrading" project, adopting tailored approaches such as replanting, developing mountainous orchards, and modernizing old orchards to address issues of low quality and inefficiency. The annual plan includes establishing 60,100 mu of new standardized production bases, ensuring that each upgraded area delivers tangible results and promotes overall industrial advancement.
Green development principles are being integrated throughout the entire industry chain. The city is fully implementing a work plan for high-quality fruit production, aiming to consolidate and expand green standardized planting bases to 600,000 mu. With a focus on premium varieties like Ruixue, green production standards will be optimized to increase the commercial fruit rate and high-quality fruit rate to 86% and over 75%, respectively, reinforcing Qingyang's position as the nation's largest high-quality Ruixue apple production base.
Demonstration projects and targeted guidance are being leveraged to stimulate growth momentum. Qingyang will continue enhancing the national-level apple industrial park in Ning County and the provincial-level park in Qingcheng County, while striving to establish a provincial-level modern agricultural industrial park in Zhengning County. This will create a coordinated, tiered development framework across city and county levels. Additionally, efforts will focus on nurturing strong industrial towns such as Tunzi Town in Zhenyuan County and Hejiapan Town in Heshui County, along with establishing high-standard technology promotion centers to extend advanced techniques and models throughout the region.
To effectively mitigate industrial risks, Qingyang is establishing a comprehensive disaster prevention and reduction system encompassing monitoring, physical protection, and emergency response. Plans for the year include installing anti-hail nets across 4,000 mu and deploying 80 frost prevention machines to safeguard orchard production. Furthermore, 190,000 mu of apple orchards will be covered by policy-based insurance, with an expansion of "insurance + futures" pilot programs. Sixty-nine specialized apple service teams will be strengthened, and insurance underwriting and claims processes optimized to enhance growers' resilience against natural disasters and market fluctuations, ensuring more secure and stable income growth for fruit farmers.