While speculation continues about China's slowing economy, the country's e-commerce sector continues to attract the attention of capital markets, particularly when it comes to high-end food.

On March 28, online fruit trader Yiguo announced it completed a new round of financing with Chinese e-commerce leader Alibaba and New York-based KKR as the lead investors.

The company would not reveal how much the financing was worth, but claimed it was the largest received to date for any round of financing in e-commerce for fresh produce.

A Yiguo representative said the amount was higher than the US$220 million in Series C funding received by COFCO-backed Womai.com last year.

In a release, Liu Haifeng of KKR Global Partners praised Yiguo's professional approach and management style, while underscoring a commitment to food safety.

Through hard work on downstream industries, quality and cold chain distribution systems, as well as a deep understanding of user habits, Yiguo has gradually established a leading position in the industry," Liu said.

"We believe this strategic cooperation will lead to a win-win situation, promote the development of Chinese fresh e-commerce industry, and provide consumers with more convenient, safer and better quality fresh products."

Yiguo co-founder Lei Jinguang said online fresh fruit shopping was an inevitable trend, and therefore quality control, efficiency and regional operations required more efforts.

He added this round of financing would help push fresh fruit further in the country, and enhance Yiguo's ability to create value for customers.

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