Market links between producers and processors. Processors must be able to obtain the
right varieties of fruit at the right stage of ripeness with the appropriate levels of quality.
In countries where smallholder fruit cultivation dominates, it is difficult to meet these
requirements. Markets with highly fragmented production typically require
consolidators to aggregate volumes and supply processors, creating a challenge for
processors to ensure that farmers are incentivized to produce fruit of appropriate
varieties and sufficient quality. Chinese government support to the processing sector in
forming direct links with farmers created the dual benefit of eliminating consolidator
margins from processors’ costs, while also ensuring that processors could capture a more