Peeling, removing the membrane, dispersing, de-seeding, and de-bittering… The processing of pomelo segments, which previously required hundreds of workers to operate continuously for 12 hours, has now been reduced to just 6 hours. Following five years of R&D investment by Zhejiang Jinming Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter “Jinming Biotechnology”) and the overcoming of 37 “bottleneck” technologies, the world’s first intelligent production line for pomelo spores, with a daily output of 120 tonnes, has officially reached full production capacity. The resulting product features distinct, well-separated granules and a significantly reduced bitterness level. Jinming Biotechnology is redefining “Chinese pomelo” for the world!
White Pomelo Spores
From a ‘human-intensive approach’ to a ‘smart factory’: a single production line rewrites the history of global pomelo processing
‘In the past, during peak season, we had to hire 300 temporary workers every day. Each worker would hold a small pair of scissors and peel an average of 300 pomelos a day, leaving their fingers red and swollen from citric acid corrosion. ”Today, Jinming Bio’s smart production line operates 24 hours a day without interruption, processing 200 tonnes of honey pomelo raw material daily. The yield rate reaches 60%, an 18-percentage-point increase over traditional methods, whilst energy consumption has been reduced by 35%. The ‘smart factory’ truly lives up to its name.
Forty years of dedication: from a state-owned canning factory to a national-level high-tech enterprise
Over nearly 40 years of development, as a long-established enterprise, Jinming Bio has consistently focused on the refined processing of citrus products, growing into a fully integrated citrus industry chain enterprise encompassing cultivation, processing, sales and research. The company has successively been awarded honours such as “National High-Tech Enterprise”, “National Science and Technology-Based SME”, “National Outstanding Citrus Processing Enterprise” and “Provincial Key Agricultural Leading Enterprise”. Chairman Fang Liming stated: “We aim to produce products that generate profits for our customers!” Currently, the pomelo capsule granules produced by Jinming far exceed industry standards.
Next Step: Building “China’s Pomelo Valley”, Aiming for a 10-billion-yuan Industrial Cluster
According to Fang Liming, Chairman of Jinming Bio, the company plans to invest in multiple intelligent production lines for various citrus capsule granules in the future. Upon completion, total production capacity will reach 300 tonnes per day, with an annual output value exceeding 500 million yuan. Simultaneously, the company is partnering with Zhejiang University and Jiangnan University to establish the “State Key Laboratory of Citrus Bio-utilization”, focusing on research into the high-end biopharmaceutical applications of naringin—such as its anti-cancer and lipid-lowering properties—and extending the industrial chain to functional foods, cosmetics and pharmaceutical intermediates, with the aim of creating a 100-billion-yuan “China Pomelo Valley”.
From “hand-peeling” to “smart manufacturing”, and from “selling raw materials” to “setting standards”, Zhejiang Jinming Biotechnology has, over the course of five years, spearheaded an “industrial revolution” in the pomelo sector. As crystal-clear pomelo capsules set sail for markets worldwide aboard refrigerated cargo ships, the Chinese pomelo is no longer merely a fruit; it has become a “golden calling card” representing China’s high-end manufacturing, digital agriculture and shared prosperity. Jinming Biotech: Showcasing the power of China’s “smart” manufacturing to the world!