Drones boost speed of Guizhou's tea industry transport

A cargo drone carries tea from tea fields to the market. [Photo by Huang Lianhe/For chinadaily.com.cn]

As spring tea picking reaches its peak in southern China, Guizhou, one of the country's major tea-producing provinces, uses drones to transport freshly picked leaves from the mountains to trading markets.

At a fresh tea trading venue in Yuqing county, a drone loaded with tea took off from a field two kilometers away, gliding before landing on an open market lot.

A cargo drone lands at a trading market in Yuqing county, Guizhou province.[Photo by Li Ning/For chinadaily.com.cn]

"Previously, tea farmers had to drive from the mountain top to collection points, a journey that took 30 to 40 minutes. With drones, that now takes just two to three minutes, drastically reducing travel time," explained Cheng Liuhua, a technical support specialist at Phoenix Wings, a drone application company affiliated with the SF Express, the nation's leading courier enterprise.

An SF Express cargo flight is being loaded with tea.[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The challenging terrain and limited transport options meant that transporting tea from when it was picked up to the airport was a prolonged affair. This not only affected the tea's freshness but also delayed its arrival in the market.

Two cargo drones are now operating for the spring tea run, handling an average of two tons daily. "This drone has a standard payload of 20 kilograms and a flight duration of 20 to 30 minutes," Cheng added.

Spring tea is being packaged for air transport.[Photo by Huang Lianhe/For chinadaily.com.cn]

SF Express has launched a direct line from the production areas. Spring tea can be transported across provinces using full freighter aircraft within six hours and delivered to major cities nationwide within 24 hours.