Growing Pineapples for Forty Years, Luye Farmer Li Wanzhi: Not an Expert, Still Experimenting

The pineapple is not an unusual food; at the very least, everyone has encountered canned pineapple, had their tongue scraped by pineapple, and often favored the sweet-and-savory pineapple shrimp balls on the dinner table. But for pineapple farmer Li Wanzhi, the pineapple is a crop he has been growing for over forty years and is still researching and experimenting with today.

Talking with Li Wanzhi about the pineapple field he runs in Longtian Village, Taitung, one deeply feels that a farmer is a pragmatic researcher who must face countless decisions requiring immediate judgment during production; a single wrong decision will discount the returns. Of course, there are many simple methods, but usually the simple way is not the one that benefits the land.

Photo 1: Li Wanzhi has lived in this pineapple field for forty years

Constrained by the Platform, Delicious Pineapples Turn Bland

Li Wanzhi, who supports a family with pineapples, mainly supplies the Homemakers United Foundation. Because his pineapple use of pesticides is reasonable and transparent, and his fruit is classified as "health grade" after on-site sampling tests showing no pesticide or chemical fertilizer residue, he has earned the trust of the Homemakers United Foundation. Although he has stable customer support, Li Wanzhi still feels somewhat helpless about the mass consumer market. For example, constrained by the standardized production and distribution process, the first thing done to pineapples after they arrive in Taipei is to put them into cold storage; and in order to let customers receive beautiful, intact products, he has no choice but to harvest early, when the pineapples have only reached 30 to 50 percent ripeness. Although the harvest time can be adjusted to customer needs, "harvesting too early leaves the pineapple lacking in flavor -- even I can't bring myself to eat it."

Li Wanzhi says the way to make pineapple most delicious is to let it ripen in the field, until the skin even oozes a little sweet sticky sap. Next, unripe pineapple must not be refrigerated; only fully ripe pineapple that is about to be eaten should go in the fridge. "Pineapples that were originally very tasty all become untasty," Li Wanzhi says. To take into account both the yield rate and consumers' preference for attractive-looking fruit, he has to harvest early, which he somewhat regrets. This is also the dilemma many producers and consumers face.

Following the farmer on a walk through the pineapple field, we in our jeans were stabbed by the pineapple's long, sharp leaves, our legs aching and itching. Li Wanzhi saw this and laughed, saying there is a method to walking into a pineapple field. First, you must enter and exit in a fixed direction. Second, you must walk like a model on a runway, with both legs in a straight line, right down the middle of the field ridge. But no matter what he said, we were unwilling to take another easy step forward, and could only ask naively, why not wear thorn-proof raincoats and rain pants? "That would kill you with heat! I used to wear two pairs of pants, but eventually I could wear shorts, get stabbed, go home, and take a hot shower." Truly, uncle has trained for this; kids, don't try this at home. This fight-fire-with-fire trick is not for everyone.

Photo 2: Laughing as he describes the self-tormenting act of walking into the pineapple field in shorts and then taking a hot shower

The Flavor and Complexity of Pineapple Should Matter More Than Size

On five fen of land, Li Wanzhi grows more than ten thousand pineapple plants, including the familiar Golden Diamond pineapple, the clearly tart Ruby pineapple, the sweet-and-sour rich native pineapple, the plump-fleshed Watermelon pineapple, and the Tainan No. 16 Honey Sweet pineapple, which he himself considers the most delicious. Li Wanzhi has different feelings and stories for each variety.

The Ruby pineapple, for instance, originated in Li Wanzhi's field. It was a variety he developed in 1983 through mutation breeding from native pineapple seedlings, and it is an autumn fruit with acidity. If other farmers want to grow it, they come to buy seedlings from him. Watermelon pineapple seedlings are the most expensive, but to create diversity in the field, Li Wanzhi still chose to plant them. The Honey Sweet variety cannot tolerate heat; even with black shade netting the effect is poor. This year he tried putting on two layers of mesh bags, but the plants were still baked crooked by the blazing sun. "If they grow up safely and can be eaten, that's good luck." We were curious: with pineapples requiring so much labor, and the price offered by wholesalers so low, how do farmers survive? "No, no -- other people don't need to work this hard. Just spray them with growth hormone, the fruit won't be dried out by the sun, and even if you ignore them they won't fall over -- they just keep growing and growing."

Li Wanzhi continued: "Some people don't dare eat pineapple because they're afraid of getting their tongue scraped. Actually, that's pineapple that has been sprayed without proper regulation. But even though it scrapes your tongue, everyone still loves it." It turns out that conventionally farmed pineapple, because of pesticide and fertilizer use, starts swelling and filling out from the top, and the leaves of the pineapple crown are also shorter. "Who wants to buy something you can't eat and that only adds weight -- leaves?" This kind of big, good-looking pineapple Li Wanzhi can spot at a glance.

Photo 3: Patrolling the field is part of Li Wanzhi's daily routine

Mastering Cultivation Techniques, Turning Proudly Pesticide-Free Pineapples into Dried Fruit

His cultivation methods cannot escape Li Wanzhi's sharp eye. Call him a pineapple expert, and he humbly says, "How am I an expert? If I were an expert, I wouldn't have been growing for forty years and still be experimenting." But when it comes to his grasp of pesticide timing, he rarely shows a proud expression. "The pineapples to be harvested in late June this year -- I stopped pesticide use back in October last year, at least eight full months without pesticide!" Compared with conventional farming, where pesticides and fertilizers are applied generously right up to one month before harvest, this is indeed a cultivation technique to be proud of.