On Oct. 25, a launch ceremony for PrizeKing Pop blueberries was held in Shanghai’s bustling Xintiandi area, marking the official market debut of the Sekoya series blueberries [3] jointly cultivated by Prize [4] and Riverking in Yunnan province.

In November 2024, Prize, a major Chilean fruit exporter, and Riverking, a leading Chinese fruit importer, came together to establish Honghe PrizeKing Agricultural Technology Development Co. Ltd. (红河煜佰兹农业科技发展有限公司) in the city of Mengzi in Yunnan province to introduce and cultivate the Sekoya Pop blueberry variety [5]. The new production base officially began operations in mid-August of this year.

According to Shawn Liu, marketing operations manager at Prize’s China branch, the South American blueberry season runs from July to January. By leveraging the geographical advantage of its Yunnan base, PrizeKing effectively fills the supply gap between import seasons, ensuring a steady, year-round supply of blueberries. Owing to its proximity to major markets, PrizeKing has introduced the concept of “freshness within reach,” enabling consumers to enjoy farm-to-table fresh fruit throughout the year. PrizeKing Pop blueberries will be available in limited quantities starting this November, with initial distribution to top-tier wholesale markets for trial sales.

Riverking not only has extensive large-scale planting experience but has also developed a robust supply chain system over more than 20 years. With cold chain storage centers across much of China, Riverking’s nationwide distribution network provides strong support for the year-round availability of PrizeKing Pop blueberries.

The Sekoya series of blueberries was developed by Fall Creek [6], a renowned blueberry breeding company, and Prize obtained planting authorization last year. Among the varieties, Sekoya Pop (FCM14-052) stands out for its large size, high sweetness, crisp texture and exceptional flavor — qualities that have made it increasingly popular in the domestic market in recent years.

In addition to the low-chill varieties, such as Sekoya Pop and Sekoya Beauty, the Sekoya series also includes medium- to high-chill varieties — Sekoya Crunch, Sekoya Grande and Sekoya Fiesta — that are suitable for cultivation in northern China. Liu added that PrizeKing plans to continue introducing northern highbush varieties from the Sekoya series to further expand and diversify its existing product portfolio.

PrizeKing’s blueberry production base is situated within the golden latitude zone of the Tropic of Cancer, an area with a mild subtropical monsoon climate and diverse ecological resources, making it highly suitable for blueberry cultivation. Honghe prefecture receives over 2,000 hours of annual sunshine and experiences significant day/night temperature differences, which promote the development of sugars and aroma in the fruit. Coupled with clean highland air, uncontaminated soil and natural alpine snowmelt water, these conditions are ideal for ensuring high fruit quality.

Images: Honghe PrizeKing Agricultural Technology Development Co. Ltd.

This article was translated from Chinese. Read the original article [7].