Good news from the plateau. On October 13th, 80 boxes of fresh goji berries produced in Haixi Prefecture, Qinghai, were air-freighted via Xining Caojiabao Airport to Hong Kong, China. This marks the first-ever export of Qinghai fresh goji berries, and also the first time fresh goji berries from anywhere in China have been shipped directly to Hong Kong by air. The company behind this “first order” is Golmud General Health Agricultural Development Co., Ltd.
Why Exporting Fresh Berries Is a Big Deal
Many people don’t realize: fresh goji berries present an entirely different level of challenge compared to the dried goji berries you usually see.
- Extremely short shelf life: fresh berries have thin skin and abundant juice, spoiling within days at room temperature;
- Extremely high transport requirements: cold chain must be maintained throughout; any delay could result in the entire batch being lost;
- Complex customs clearance: fresh berries are classified as fresh agricultural produce, with inspection and quarantine standards far stricter than for dried fruit;
Precisely because of these difficulties, Qinghai goji berries have long been exported only in dried form — easy to store and simple to transport. But dried berries are merely a “primary agricultural product,” whereas fresh berries are true premium fruit. They are sweet, juicy, and fragrant, ready to eat straight from the box; they retain more complete vitamin C, anthocyanins, and other active compounds, making them far more nutritionally rich. The significance of this first order goes beyond simply selling fresh berries. It means — for the first time, Qinghai goji berries have stepped onto the high-end consumer market stage in their identity as “fresh fruit.”
How Was This Order Made Possible?
From the Qaidam Basin to Hong Kong — thousands of kilometers away — how do fresh goji berries arrive still “fresh”? The answer lies in hard capability across the entire supply chain.
- At the source: the foundation of organic cultivation.
General Health operates a 10,000-mu goji berry planting base in the Qaidam Basin. High altitude, ample sunlight, and irrigation with Kunlun Mountain snowmelt create a natural growing environment that gives fresh goji berries export-grade quality from the very start. A 2,675-mu goji base has earned the national “Three No Products + Full Traceability” certification — one of only 60 such operations nationwide — meaning quality is strictly controlled right from the planting stage.
- Quality control: a full set of standards from packaging facility to traceability system.
To ensure smooth export of fresh goji berries, Xining Customs proactively engaged and stepped in early, guiding the company through registration as an export fruit packaging facility and helping build a robust quality-safety management and traceability system. From planting and harvesting to sorting and packaging, every step follows established standards and is fully traceable. It is this system that has transformed fresh-berry exports from a question of “whether it can be done” to one of “how to do it even better.”
- In transit: a cold chain that never breaks.
Fresh berries enter the cold chain immediately after picking. From pre-cooling and grading to packaging and transport, every step is carried out at low temperature. From harvest to boarding the aircraft, the cold chain remains unbroken — locking in freshness to the greatest extent possible.
- Efficiency: “zero-delay” customs clearance.
Xining Customs proactively coordinated and intervened early to guide the company through export fruit packaging facility registration, opening a “green channel” for fresh agricultural produce with priority inspection, priority release, and by-appointment clearance. From harvest to boarding, the time was compressed to the absolute minimum.
What This Means for General Health
For General Health, this first order is not the finish line — it is a new starting point.
- Product upgrade: from dried berries to fresh fruit.
In the past, General Health’s goji product line focused mainly on dried berries and juice puree. The success of fresh-berry exports means General Health’s goji product line is officially extending into the premium fresh fruit market. Going forward, consumers will not only be able to enjoy General Health goji puree and dried goji berries — but they will also be able to taste fresh goji berries from the Qaidam region.
- Brand upgrade: from “raw material supplier” to “premium brand.”
The ability to export fresh berries to Hong Kong is itself the strongest proof of quality. It demonstrates that General Health goji — in planting standards, cold-chain capability, quality-control systems, and customs efficiency — has already met the requirements of international high-end markets.
- Industry upgrade: blazing a trail for Qinghai’s specialty agricultural products.
This achievement is not only General Health’s breakthrough; it also paves the way for other fresh agricultural products from Qinghai to enter export markets. From dried to fresh, from domestic to export, the value chain of the plateau’s specialty agricultural products is being extended step by step.
A single goji berry grows from the sandy soil of the Qaidam Basin, nurtured by over 2,000 hours of annual sunshine, then carefully hand-picked, pre-cooled, graded, and packaged. It boards a refrigerated truck, catches a flight, crosses thousands of kilometers, and ultimately arrives on a dining table in Hong Kong. This is no ordinary goji berry’s journey. This is the first step of Qinghai goji berries into the high-end market. And General Health is steadily broadening this path, making it wider and wider.
