Basic Introduction to Minqin Honeydew Melon
Minqin honeydew melon, produced in Minqin County, Gansu Province, has a planting history of over 50 years, and its product quality surpasses that of similar products elsewhere. It was rated as a high-quality agricultural product in the province in 1992, and it received certification as a “green food” from the National Green Food Development Center. In 1995, it was awarded the title of “Time-honored Brand of China” by the Ministry of Domestic Trade of the People's Republic of China. It won the gold medal at the 1999 Kunming World Horticultural Exposition in Yunnan and received first prize for recommended fruit for the Beijing Olympics in 2008, with the county designated as a national melon production base. As a result, Minqin is known as the “Land of Melons.”
Minqin is renowned nationwide as the “Land of Melons.” Its inland desert climate, characterized by long hours of sunlight and significant day-night temperature differences, along with sandy soil conditions and the widespread use of non-polluting farming techniques, makes its yellow and white honeydew melons popular in domestic and international markets for their jade-green flesh and sweet aroma. These melons are widely loved by consumers as “aromatic” and “sweet” melons and have become “golden” and “precious” melons for farmers' prosperity. They have been certified as “green food” by the state. In the Beijing Olympic Fruit Selection and Chinese Famous Fruit Evaluation organized by authoritative bodies including the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee, the high-quality yellow and white honeydews from Minqin stood out among more than 260 varieties of fruits submitted from across the country. The “Ganmibao” variety won first prize for recommended fruit for the Beijing Olympics, “Tianxiangmi” and “Jinhongbao” won second prizes, and “Yindi” won third prize. These were the only honeydew melons to win awards among all melon entries.
Nutritional Value
1. Contains a large amount of water and vitamins, which can help quench thirst, relieve heat, and calm the mind and spirit.
2. Rich in antioxidants, which can reduce the formation of melanin in the skin and enhance cellular resistance to sun damage.
3. Vitamin-rich, beneficial for heart and liver function and intestinal activity, and aids in clearing toxins from the lungs.
4. Contains vitamin C and B vitamins, ensuring the body's normal metabolic needs.
Product Characteristics
1. Sugar content is around 15%.
2. Fiber content is between 2.6% and 6.7%, and also contains malic acid, pectin substances, vitamins A, B, and C.
3. Contains niacin as well as calcium, phosphorus, and iron.
4. Contains a large amount of iron, about two to three times more than chicken and 17 times more than milk.
5. Apart from having lower water and protein content than watermelon, Xizhou honeydew melon does not fall short in other nutritional components compared to watermelon and has higher levels of aromatic substances, minerals, sugars, and vitamin C.
Awards and Honors
The Yellow River honeydew melon was rated as a high-quality agricultural product in the province in 1992 and has received “green food” certification from the National Green Food Development Center. The “Yujinxiang” honeydew melon variety, cultivated by the Gansu River Melon and Vegetable Research Institute in Minqin County's honeydew melon production base, won the gold, silver, and bronze awards in the “Zhongnanhai Cup” competition held in Beijing's Daxing District from 1998 to 2002, consecutively for five years. It also won the gold award for new technologies and varieties in the nine provinces and regions along the Yellow River and was designated as a key promotion variety by the General Station for Agricultural Technology Extension under the Ministry of Agriculture in 2003. Varieties such as Yujinxiang, Hongmibao, Yindi, Jinguan, No. 2 Hongzhuangyuan, and Aerospace Yujinxiang have won multiple awards nationally. The Yujinxiang and Jinguan honeydew melon varieties passed variety identification by the National Agricultural Technology Extension Service Center on June 28, 2004, and were officially named and promoted.