South China’s Hainan province is renowned for its beaches and stunning blue seas, but there is also a lesser-known green resource produced on the island offering rich rewards.
Tunchang county, situated in hilly terrain in the middle of the tropical island, is home to 1,307 sprawling hectares of Aquilaria trees that produce lucrative agarwood.
Agarwood, a resin-dense wood known for its aromatic and medicinal properties, has significant cultural and economic value for Tunchang.
In recent decades, the agarwood industry in Tunchang has flourished through targeted planning, development, and cooperation between officials, farmers, researchers, agricultural experts and enterprises.
On Nov 29, the trademark for geographical indication certification of Hainan agarwood was unveiled at a ceremony in Tunchang. A local office to streamline the processing of certification applications was also opened.
“Compared with the domestic market, the agarwood industry in Tunchang is still in its early stages and has yet to achieve a large scale,” said Li Fangying, deputy director of the county’s development and reform commission.
“To address this, we are employing a strategy of attracting the best by drawing targeted investments, fostering a thriving ecosystem around agarwood, and stimulating industrial growth.”
Billion-yuan ambition
Growing and processing agarwood is a time-consuming and intricate process, but it offers great financial rewards.
In Tunchang, the average price of high-quality agarwood, produced from trees that have undergone three years of artificial physical resin production, is around 8,000 yuan ($1,100) per kilogram, according to the county government.
Agarwood cultivation in Tunchang dates back to the late 1950s, but it was not until 2004 that local farmers recognized its commercial value and started the production of artificial agarwood.
The agarwood planted in the county is the native Aquilaria sinensis species, and the process of planting and harvesting agarwood is relatively lengthy, taking eight to 10 years.
However, in recent years some companies have developed agarwood production methods, such as bio-micro invasive technology and saw-cut and inoculation technology, to improve the efficiency of agarwood resin extraction.
“Thanks to the introduction of these resin production technologies, the time required to harvest agarwood resin is shortened to around three years, while they have also significantly increased the purity of the extracted resin,” said local farmer Tang Dianjin.
The county has 20 planting companies and cooperatives, including two large-scale ones, already in operation.
In the long term, Tunchang is aiming to develop a billion-yuan agarwood industry and establish itself as a nationally renowned “fragrant valley” by 2030.
An additional 800 hectares of Aquilaria plantations are planned by 2026, taking the total area in the county to over 2,053 hectares. The expansion aims to stabilize annual agarwood resin production over an area of 66.7 hectares, resulting in a projected resin output of 50 metric tons worth more than 300 million yuan.
By 2030, the county plans to increase the planting area of high-quality agarwood trees by 133 hectares and become the largest agarwood production region in the province with 2,587 hectares, said the Tunchang county government office.
A cluster of leading enterprises specializing in agarwood planting, processing, and trading, is also being nurtured by the county government.
An international trade center will also be established to facilitate global trade in agarwood products.
In addition, Tunchang county is looking to create agarwood-themed health tourism spots, museums, and towns, that offer visitors an immersive experience tied to agarwood heritage.
Other measures to boost the industry include the establishment of a logistics center and modern distribution facilities to aid the transportation of agarwood, said Li from the county’s development commission.
High-tech help
Aquilaria trees undergo a natural process of agarwood resin formation due to environmental “stress factors”, including insect bites, animal grazing, wind, rain, and lightning strikes, and bacterial erosion.
Agarwood resin production typically involves two main methods — traditional natural practices and artificial induction via bio-inoculants and chemical inducers.
To stimulate the harvest of agarwood resins, many farmers often resort to mimicking the natural process of agarwood formation by deliberately exposing the inner parts of trees to pathogens and insect infestations. This is typically accomplished through physical stress to the trees, such as making incisions, digging holes, or creating wounds using tools like nails, axes, or screws.
These practices, however, can potentially harm the overall growth and health of agarwood trees.
Recognizing this risk, researcher Yang Yun and his team at the Hainan Branch Institute of Medical Plant Development of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, developed groundbreaking technology that involves the infusion of bio-inoculants directly into the trunk of agarwood trees.
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