On December 13, the Heytea cooperative mango planting base in Ledong Li Autonomous County, Hainan, officially received the "Sustainable Planting Demonstration Base" recognition. This evaluation was awarded by the Sustainable Agricultural Product Distribution Project (SADP), which is jointly implemented by the China Chain Store & Franchise Association (CCFA), the Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), and the Swedish Environmental Research Institute. Experts from the project team acknowledged Heytea’s efforts in fulfilling social responsibility by strengthening upstream process management through the order-based farming model, empowering farmers to improve quality and increase income, and promoting the transition of Hainan’s Xiao Tai Nong mango to sustainable planting practices.

This recognition comes shortly after Heytea's mulberry base in Jinzao Town, Shantou, received the same "Sustainable Planting Demonstration Base" award. Since the beginning of this year, Heytea has developed over 10,000 acres of order-based agricultural cooperation orchards nationwide, including locations for mulberries, Xiao Tai Nong mangoes, Sunshine Rose green grapes, Kyoho grapes, and Summer Black grapes, spanning premium fruit-growing regions from Liaoning in the north to Hainan in the south. Among these, the mulberries from Shantou and Xiao Tai Nong mangoes from Hainan have already been introduced to Heytea stores nationwide, becoming the first batch of seasonal fresh fruits from Heytea’s order-based agricultural cooperation orchards.

Rooted in the "Mango Capital," Dual-Testing Ensures Quality Orchards

Mango-based products such as Yeye Mango Mango, Zhizhi Mango Mango, and Mango Mango Sweet Dew, made from fresh mangoes, are important items in Heytea's classic fruit tea series, making mango one of the most frequently used fruits in Heytea’s offerings. By taking into account the seasonal availability and optimal tasting periods of different mango varieties, Heytea has established a continuous, stable supply model with two varieties—Kait Mango and Xiao Tai Nong Mango—ensuring year-round fresh fruit availability. In mid-November this year, with the new harvest season arriving, Heytea stores nationwide began the switch from Kait Mango to Xiao Tai Nong Mango, using for the first time Xiao Tai Nong Mangoes from Heytea’s order-based agricultural cooperation orchards in Hainan.

Hainan, located in a tropical maritime climate zone, has warm and humid weather year-round, with abundant sunshine. These climatic conditions are highly suitable for mango cultivation. The Xiao Tai Nong mangoes produced here are known for their high sweetness, thick and plump flesh, low fiber, delicate texture, and juicy flavor.In addition, Hainan has a long history of mango cultivation, and the large-scale planting of Xiao Tai Nong mangoes is already relatively mature. Mangoes from various regions in Hainan are sufficient to meet Heytea's store demand for fresh fruit from November to May of the following year.

In response to the large-scale, concentrated orchard planting foundation for Hainan mangoes, Heytea officially launched the "Hainan Mango Orchard Selection" at the end of September this year.By selecting well-managed, cooperative high-quality orchards in Hainan's mango-producing areas, such as Ledong Li Autonomous County and Sanya, and intervening in the key stage about 30 days before harvest for centralized management, Heytea has further improved the quality of mango raw materials.At the same time, Heytea plans to identify orchards with long-term cooperation potential and willingness during this phase, and work together to explore more sustainable, in-depth contract farming models to better improve the planting standards and quality of Xiao Tai Nong mangoes.

After visiting and testing more than 50 orchards, Heytea ultimately selected five that met the requirements to supply the current phase of store demand.During the first round of visits, in addition to checking the planting environment, fruit set, and pest issues, Heytea supply chain staff also carried test strips capable of detecting eight commonly used pesticides and insecticides to perform initial tests on the fresh fruit.Only after the orchard passed the initial screening did Heytea engage in further discussions about potential contract farming cooperation, while simultaneously sending samples of fresh fruit from the branches to a third-party professional testing agency as part of the evaluation criteria for collaboration.

Using this approach, based on the fresh mango requirements of Heytea stores, the Heytea supply chain team expects to continue screening over 6,000 acres and around 200 mango orchards to ensure continuous fresh fruit supply for the stores.

Seizing the "Golden 30 Days" for Intervention and Strict Quality Control of Fresh Fruit

Mango cultivation in Hainan benefits from an excellent geographic environment, but frequent typhoons and excessive rainfall inevitably bring challenges to quality management. Especially in the key stage before harvest, typhoon weather can cause damage to the mango skins, and increased rainfall heightens the risk of pests and diseases, all of which directly impact the yield and quality of fresh Xiao Tai Nong mangoes.Heytea intervenes at this stage, not only providing custom management plans and offering selected, short-interval, safe pesticide options for cooperating orchards free of charge but also ensuring the effective implementation of the management plan through strict registration of pesticide distribution, usage reports, and record retention.

Heytea requires the fresh fruit to hang for at least 110 days before it can be harvested to ensure a richer flavor experience. Then, during the approximately 7-day harvest period, Heytea arranges pre-harvest sampling tests and combines these with in-warehouse and in-store testing using test strips, totaling three rounds of testing.At the same time, Heytea will further investigate the cooperating orchards based on the test results and corresponding traceability information.

Fresh Xiao Tai Nong mangoes harvested at the production site are treated with Heytea's custom water bath equipment, which effectively prevents the formation of black spots during transportation and helps maintain better freshness.Afterward, workers at the processing center sort the treated mangoes a second time. The selected mangoes are packaged with cushioning materials, such as foam paper, to prevent damage during transportation.The packaged mangoes are then transported to the warehouse via cold chain logistics.The ripened mangoes are delivered to Heytea stores every 48 hours. The stores conduct multiple quality checks based on the product specification book, and after the final in-store inspection, the mangoes are washed, freshly cut, and used in product preparation.

Deep Participation in Plantation Management, Heytea’s Partner Base Receives “Sustainable Planting Demonstration Base” Certification.

The "Sustainable Agricultural Product Distribution Project" was jointly initiated by the China Chain Store & Franchise Association (CCFA), the Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and the Swedish Environmental Institute. The project aims to enhance the competitiveness of upstream supply chains and promote the green production and quality improvement of fruits and vegetables.Since November this year, Heytea has been awarded the first batch of "Sustainable Planting Demonstration Base" certifications from the project team for its deep contract farming practices and quality improvement achievements in the upstream supply chain of mulberries and mangoes.

The project team experts, after conducting research, concluded that Heytea has established systematic regulations and standards for the management of fresh fruit bases at its mulberry and mango production sites, especially excelling in areas such as traceability of food safety management, standardization of fresh fruit procurement, pesticide residue monitoring before harvest, post-harvest product processing, and food safety risk control.As a result, Heytea became one of the first representative companies to receive the "Sustainable Planting Demonstration Base" certification.At the same time, Heytea further collaborated with the "Sustainable Agricultural Product Distribution Project" to provide sustainable planting training to farmers, agricultural workers, and cooperative staff at Heytea’s mulberry base in Jinzao Town, Shantou City, Guangdong Province, and its Xiao Tai Nong mango base in Ledong Li Autonomous County, Hainan Province. They were also awarded training certificates, truly empowering upstream farmers.During this process, project experts, combining cutting-edge research and industry best practices, provided Heytea with recommendations to improve its planting management. This offered practical guidance for Heytea's future in-depth exploration of sustainable planting and quality enhancement.

After visiting Heytea’s Hainan Xiao Tai Nong mango cooperation base, Associate Researcher Zhou Hui from the Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, commented that the certification helps raise local farmers' awareness of sustainable production practices. Heytea’s contract farming model provides farmers with a stable sales channel, allowing them to enjoy high-quality and fairly priced benefits, bridging smallholders with the modern distribution system. At the same time, Heytea introduces sustainable production standards and requirements to farmers, inviting experts from research institutions to provide technical guidance tailored to local climate conditions, promoting the integration of production, academia, and research. This ultimately ensures that farmers earn income, companies make profits, and consumers receive quality agricultural products, reshaping the value chain and achieving a win-win situation. This is also the goal that the "Sustainable Agricultural Product Distribution Project" aimed to achieve from the beginning.

In September of this year, Heytea issued an internal letter to its business partners with the theme "Creating Differentiated Brands and Products for Consumers."In this letter, Heytea formally proposed to deliver more differentiated products and brand experiences.As one of the first brands in the industry to use real fruit ingredients, Heytea not only committed to the strictest "Four Truths, Seven Zeros" health beverage promise but also insists on using "real tea, real milk, real fruit, and real sugar" as ingredients in its beverages.On the other hand, Heytea continuously moves upstream, promoting the contract farming model. By developing and implementing planting plans, Heytea reduces pesticide residues and heavy metal contamination risks while improving the quality and planting efficiency of fresh fruit, thereby enhancing the flavor profile of its fruit tea products.