Crossbred citrus varieties are usually harvested in January, but some growers send them to market early, which drives down prices. To resolve the situation, researchers developed a new crossbreed that matures earlier. Joseph Kim has more.




Report

Crossbred citrus varieties such as (레드향)Red hyang, (한라봉) Hallabong and (천혜향) Cheonhyehyang are loved by consumers.

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Unripe citrus hybrids push down market prices

They are shipped to markets in January after the last of the season’s mandarin oranges have been released to the market.

However, some farmers ship citrus hybrids to the market prematurely, before they ripen, which causes a drop in the market price. This happens every year.

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New ‘winter prince’ variety bred for earlier harvest

To solve this problem, the Citrus Research Institute of the Rural Development Administration has developed early harvest citrus variety.

It is named “Winter Prince” and crossbred of Harehime variety and (태전병감) Taejeonbyeonggam.

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Harvested late November to late December

The new variety is harvested between late November and late December, one month earlier than other crossbred citrus.

It has a rough peel, but is easy to peel off and its meat is juicy.

Its sugar content exceeds 12 degrees brix. It’s at least 2 degrees higher than mandarin oranges.

The new variety will be distributed to seedling shops beginning next year and planted on farms from 2019.

INTERVIEW
Park Seok-man / Researcher, Rural Development Administration
Seedlings of the new variety can be distributed to farmers beginning in the winter of 2019. Mandarins usually hit the market in November and December, and these will also be timed for the early-winter citrus market.
<인터뷰 : 박석만/농촌진흥청 농업연구사>
"실질적으로 재배하는 농민들에게는 2019년 겨울철쯤 되면 농가들이 식재할 수 있을 거라고 생각됩니다. 현재 11월, 12월은 온주밀감 위주로 우리나라에 감귤이 유통되고 있는데요. 그 틈새시장을 뚫고 새로운 만감류 품종들이 그 시장에 진출하지 않을까…."

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Outdoor cultivation to be tested

The Rural Development Administration is planning to test out-door cultivation of the new species, instead of in greenhouses.

22 citrus hybrids have been developed. But only 2 percent of them have been actually distributed to citrus growers.

[Reporter] Joseph Kim
[Camera] Hyeon Gwang-hoon

However, as superior species are developed and cultivation techniques are stabilized, more new crossbred citrus are expected to be distributed to farmers.

Joseph Kim, KCTV