President Visits Yunlin Young Farmers to Learn About Agricultural Processing Mentorship Results

President Ma Visits Yunlin Young Farmers, Tastes Green Bamboo Shoots

On the morning of September 26, President Ma, accompanied by Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Baoji and Yunlin County Deputy Magistrate Zhang Huangzhen, inspected the green bamboo shoot processing plant operated by Li Xingchen, one of the Top 100 Young Farmers under the Council of Agriculture's dedicated mentorship program, to learn about its operations. The President expressed satisfaction and recognition that, through the Council of Agriculture's mentorship and assistance, Li Xingchen successfully replicated the family's original green bamboo shoot farming and processing business from Daxi, Taoyuan, in Dounan, Yunlin, and helped develop the local bamboo shoot industry.

Afterward, the President listened to reports from four attending young farmers on their future business directions and visions, and remarked, "Amazing everywhere, inspiring at every moment, Taiwan's agriculture, hope is visible," encouraging young farmers to devote themselves to value-added development in the agricultural industry chain and to play an active role as leaders of innovation in the agricultural sector, not only becoming a new generation of agricultural workers but also opening new horizons for the future of Taiwan's agriculture.

Agricultural Value-Added, People-Centered

The Council of Agriculture stated that our agriculture faces urgent problems including "an aging workforce and a gap in management successors," "lack of economies of scale," and "a mismatch between talent cultivation and practical application." In the future, major agricultural policy plans such as the Taiwan Bioeconomy Industry Development Plan, Agricultural Productivity 4.0, and agricultural e-commerce will also require the new generation of agricultural workers as a driving force, leading young people to enter agriculture with innovative thinking. Through strategies such as cross-disciplinary cooperation, market value orientation, smart production management, and creative service value-added, new momentum will be injected into agricultural development and sustainable agricultural development will be promoted.

The Council of Agriculture explained that in response to trade liberalization and urban consumer market trends, safe, fresh, ready-to-eat agricultural processing technology is one of the key factors for agricultural exports and value-added. Through key technology development and agricultural product integration, Taiwan's high-quality agricultural products can be effectively promoted internationally.

Among them, four young farmers, Li Xingchen, Lin Shangwei, Zhang Jianhao, and Hou Zhaofeng, operate agricultural production and processing businesses. Through joint mentorship and exchange and cooperation, they leverage the multiplying effect of team innovation and learning, and assist young farmers in moving from primary production to secondary processing and manufacturing, encouraging them to continuously refine their techniques, produce safe and high-quality processed agricultural products, and enhance market competitiveness.

Young Farmer Cultivation, Mentorship Bears Fruit

The Council of Agriculture pointed out that it promotes the "Auspicious Time to Farm, Youth Chasing Dreams" young farmer dedicated mentorship program, selecting 100 young farmers each year and providing two years of mentorship. Combining various agricultural policy resources such as the Farmers' Academy, small landlords with large tenants, and young farmer startup loans, it provides accompanied mentorship including production technology, marketing, finance, research and development, organization, and informatization, as well as various assistance measures such as facility and equipment subsidies and three-year zero-interest dedicated loans, enabling young farmers to grow steadily in their early farming years and develop toward expanding operational scale and innovation and value-added directions.

In mentoring the first cohort of the Top 100 Young Farmers dedicated mentorship program, the Council of Agriculture mobilized more than 4,200 person-times of agricultural technical and cross-disciplinary experts, introduced 92 new technologies or varieties in conjunction with experimental research resources, subsidized more than 15.3 million yuan in facilities and equipment needed for operations, and approved more than 88.97 million yuan in young farmer startup loans. Young farmers' output value increased by an average of 11%, expanded operational scale by more than 400 hectares, more than 190 items passed GAP (Good Agricultural Practice), traceability, or organic certification, and about 200 products were assisted in expanding their sales channels.