Recently, Pingtan, China's fifth-largest island is welcoming a bumper crop of carrots!  

In Dazhong Village, groups of farmers squat over carrot patches as they work their way down the lanes of bright orange. Freshly unearthed carrots piled neatly on the side. Workers adeptly cut off the green leaves of the carrots before bagging them. 

According to one of the harvest workers,  when cutting the leaves, making sure the head of the carrot is intact is the key to keeping them fresh. The harvest time should be sweet and short. Otherwise, new carrots will turn black when exposed to the sun for too long.

"The area is about 160 mu (or 10.67 hectares), bearing an average of about 6000 kilograms per mu. The harvest will last until the end of April. This year, one enterprise in Zhangzhou City ordered more than 60 mu (or 4 hectares) of carrots,” said Lin Sunxiong, head of the company.

"Carrots cultivated in sandy soil have smoother skin and crunchier texture. These carrots are in active demand in the market. We buy carrots from farmers and supply them to markets and supermarkets nationwide. Some are also exported to Malaysia," Chen Yun, head of Zhangzhou Lianying Agricultural Development Co., Ltd. said.

Washing, air-drying... In the factory of Pingtan Lvsheng Comprehensive Agriculture Co., Ltd. in Xiayu Village, Haitan District, the carrots became smooth and clean after several processes. They are sorted, bagged, and transported to     trucks for delivery. The manager Shi Wenbin said that in addition to undertaking carrot processing business, the company has also planted more than 400 mu (or 26.67 hectares) of carrots in Xiayu Village, which have been harvested since mid-February. 

Most of them are sold to Jiangsu, Guangdong provinces. It is reported that the carrot planting area in Pingtan is about 1,500 mu (or 100 hectares), mainly distributed in villages in Haitan area, Junshan area and other places.

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