2 million! Qingdao Agricultural University successfully transfers the red-fleshed apple variety "Hong Dan"!
Published 2025년 11월 25일
Tridge summary
On November 5, Qingdao Agricultural University and Tibet Shangcheng Health Industry Co., Ltd. held a signing ceremony in Yantai, officially completing the technology transfer of the new red-fleshed apple variety "Hongdan" for 2 million yuan.
Zhang Yugang, the head of the apple breeding team at the Horticulture College of Qingdao Agricultural University, introduced that this variety is the fourth new apple variety successfully transferred by the team after "Fuji," "Fujiuhong," and "Fuxing." To address the issues of sourness, astringency, and mealiness in red-fleshed apples, the team has been using multi-generation backcrossing technology and multi-gene pyramiding breeding strategies since 2009. They hybridized Xinjiang red-fleshed cherry with "Gala" apple to select the second-generation red-fleshed superior line, then hybridized it with the high-sugar variety "Fuji," ultimately cultivating the third-generation red-fleshed apple "Hongdan."
The "Hongdan" fruit is nearly round, with a single fruit weight of 132.1 grams, a deep red surface, and fresh, red, crisp flesh. It has a sweet and sour taste without astringency, with a soluble solids content of 15.5%. The fruit contains flavonoids and anthocyanins, making it suitable for both fresh consumption and processing, especially for NFC juice and fruit wine production. The variety ripens in late October, can be stored at low temperatures for almost a year, and has excellent early flowering, early fruiting, and early high yield properties. It has strong branching power and resistance to early defoliation. The cultivation process does not require branch pulling or bagging, making it labor-saving and simple.
It is understood that the apple breeding team at the Horticulture College of Qingdao Agricultural University has bred 23 new apple varieties, including the "Lujia" series, "Fujilei," and "Fujia." The successful technology transfer of the new apple varieties "Fujixing," "Fujiuhong," "Fuji," and "Hongdan" and the "Eluo" series rootstocks has generated over 20 million yuan, and they have been promoted and applied in Shandong, Henan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Xinjiang, and other regions.
Among them, the high-sugar variety "Fuji" was transferred in 2017, with a fruit development period of about 165 days, and it generally ripens in mid-October in the Qingdao area. It is the first apple variety in China to transfer the right to use the apple variety rights. "Fujiuhong" was transferred in 2020, a new mid-ripe apple variety for fresh consumption, with a fruit development period of about 140 days. The "Fujixing" variety transferred the seedling propagation and operation rights in February 2024 for 10 million yuan, setting a record for the highest late-maturing apple variety transfer fee in Shandong Province and the third highest in the country. "Fujixing" is easy to color and suitable for bagless cultivation, with a sugar core phenomenon when harvested slightly late.
Image source: Dazhong News 2025 International Fruit and Vegetable Report. All rights reserved. For reprint permission, please contact the International Fruit and Vegetable Report and credit the source.
Zhang Yugang, the head of the apple breeding team at the Horticulture College of Qingdao Agricultural University, introduced that this variety is the fourth new apple variety successfully transferred by the team after "Fuji," "Fujiuhong," and "Fuxing." To address the issues of sourness, astringency, and mealiness in red-fleshed apples, the team has been using multi-generation backcrossing technology and multi-gene pyramiding breeding strategies since 2009. They hybridized Xinjiang red-fleshed cherry with "Gala" apple to select the second-generation red-fleshed superior line, then hybridized it with the high-sugar variety "Fuji," ultimately cultivating the third-generation red-fleshed apple "Hongdan."
The "Hongdan" fruit is nearly round, with a single fruit weight of 132.1 grams, a deep red surface, and fresh, red, crisp flesh. It has a sweet and sour taste without astringency, with a soluble solids content of 15.5%. The fruit contains flavonoids and anthocyanins, making it suitable for both fresh consumption and processing, especially for NFC juice and fruit wine production. The variety ripens in late October, can be stored at low temperatures for almost a year, and has excellent early flowering, early fruiting, and early high yield properties. It has strong branching power and resistance to early defoliation. The cultivation process does not require branch pulling or bagging, making it labor-saving and simple.
It is understood that the apple breeding team at the Horticulture College of Qingdao Agricultural University has bred 23 new apple varieties, including the "Lujia" series, "Fujilei," and "Fujia." The successful technology transfer of the new apple varieties "Fujixing," "Fujiuhong," "Fuji," and "Hongdan" and the "Eluo" series rootstocks has generated over 20 million yuan, and they have been promoted and applied in Shandong, Henan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Xinjiang, and other regions.
Among them, the high-sugar variety "Fuji" was transferred in 2017, with a fruit development period of about 165 days, and it generally ripens in mid-October in the Qingdao area. It is the first apple variety in China to transfer the right to use the apple variety rights. "Fujiuhong" was transferred in 2020, a new mid-ripe apple variety for fresh consumption, with a fruit development period of about 140 days. The "Fujixing" variety transferred the seedling propagation and operation rights in February 2024 for 10 million yuan, setting a record for the highest late-maturing apple variety transfer fee in Shandong Province and the third highest in the country. "Fujixing" is easy to color and suitable for bagless cultivation, with a sugar core phenomenon when harvested slightly late.
Image source: Dazhong News 2025 International Fruit and Vegetable Report. All rights reserved. For reprint permission, please contact the International Fruit and Vegetable Report and credit the source.
Original content
On November 5, Qingdao Agricultural University and Tibet Shangcheng Health Industry Co., Ltd. held a signing ceremony in Yantai, officially completing the technology transfer of the new red-fleshed apple variety "Hongdan" for 2 million yuan. Zhang Yugang, the head of the apple breeding team at the Horticulture College of Qingdao Agricultural University, introduced that this variety is the fourth new apple variety successfully transferred by the team after "Fuji," "Fujiuhong," and "Fuxing." To address the issues of sourness, astringency, and mealiness in red-fleshed apples, the team has been using multi-generation backcrossing technology and multi-gene pyramiding breeding strategies since 2009. They hybridized Xinjiang red-fleshed cherry with "Gala" apple to select the second generation of red-fleshed superior lines, then hybridized them with the high-sugar variety "Fuji," ultimately cultivating the third-generation red-fleshed apple "Hongdan." The fruit of "Hongdan" is nearly ...
Source: Guojiguoshu
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