This year's first harvest of Jeju’s exceptionally sweet apple mangos is underway. It’s starting off well for growers, with prices up over 10 percent compared to last year. Joseph Kim reports.

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Andeok-myeon, Seogwipo

The branches are heavily loaded with well-grown mangos, nicknamed the Queen of Fruits.

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This year’s first harvest of apple mangos

This year's first harvest of the sweet and fragrant fruit is underway.

Pickers are carefully selecting the partly reddish ones.

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Innovative farming techniques allow for early harvest

Normally, apple mangos are harvested between June and August.

Thanks to innovative farming, its harvest can be made beginning February.

The flesh is soft and the sugar content reaches over 15 degrees Brix.

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Sweetness sets Jeju apple mangos apart

As apple mangos grown in Jeju are sweeter than ones grown on the mainland or imported ones, it is popular amongst consumers.

This year, the early harvest fruit is selling at a high price as a limited number of farmers are able to harvest it early.

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Wholesale price set at ￦100,000/kg

Prices are set at 100,000 won per kilogram. That's over 11 percent higher than prices last year.

INTERVIEW
Gang Tae-uk / Grower
We're harvesting 15 days earlier than last year. As supply can’t keep up with demand, prices are high.
<인터뷰 : 강태욱/ 애플망고 농가>
"저희 농가는 (지난해보다) 보름정도 수확시기가 빨라졌습니다. 워낙 공급량이 모자라다 보니까 가격이 높게 형성되고 있습니다."

For early harvest during the winter, a reliable heating and cooling system is necessary to ensure greenhouses consistently operate at an optimal level.

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Greenhouse temperatures key to early harvest

Temperatures inside the apple mango greenhouses should be kept at 13 degrees Celsius in summer and 25 in winter.

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Waste heat and rainwater utilized

The early harvesters use excess heat discharged from nearby thermoelectric power plants and rain water to save on their energy cost.

INTERVIEW
Ko Seung-chan / Jeju Agricultural Research & Extension Services
Apple mango farmers can cut their energy cost more than 50% by using excess heat from power plants and the renewable energy sources that my office supports.
<인터뷰 : 고승찬/ 제주서부농업기술센터 아열대과수팀장>
"발전소 폐열이라던가 농업기술원에서 지원하는 신재생 에너지를 이용해서 기존 농가보다 경영비를 50% 이상 절감할 수 있습니다."

Jeju is the biggest producer of apple mangos in Korea.

[Reporter] Joseph Kim
[Camera] Ko Moon-su

As prices of the fruit are set high, farmers expect they'll have a good year.

Joseph Kim, KCTV