The Konjac Brother leads his fellow villagers to prosperity in the high mountains

Heye Village in Heye Town, Guiyang County is surrounded by green mountains. The mountain climate with high altitude and large temperature differences between day and night has allowed an ancient plant, konjac, to grow in the soil here for generations, and it also became an early traditional industry of the area and a means for villagers to support their families. However, because of the huge profits from coal mining afterward, konjac was gradually forgotten by everyone, left to rot in the fields with no one paying attention to it.

Tan Guangsheng saw all of this. In order to let the traditional industry of his hometown shine again, he registered and established the first farmers' cooperative in Heye Town, adopted a business model of marketing plus cultivation, signed agreements with nearly 100 farming households, and purchased the konjac grown by farmers at three times the market price. Because of the large demand for making dried konjac, the farmers' worries about not daring to grow konjac were completely dispelled. In this way, he led the farmers onto the road of escaping poverty and becoming prosperous.

The first impression Tan Guangsheng gave the reporter was that of an honest and simple man. Short in stature and dark-skinned, he is the founder of the local traditional handmade konjac tofu and is called "Konjac Brother." The konjac tofu Tan Guangsheng makes by a unique traditional handmade method has a distinctive chewy texture, and its price is several times higher than that on the market. It is called "sky-high-priced konjac" by local villagers, but through his unremitting efforts, he ultimately won the people's praise. Because fresh konjac is very heavy, has a short shelf life, and is also limited by the regional environment, Tan Guangsheng developed dried konjac last year through innovative methods.

Walking into Tan Guangsheng's workshop, the reporter found that the workers inside were all racing against time to make dried konjac. Tan Guangsheng told the reporter that the production process for dried konjac is rather cumbersome. It must first be cleaned, then ground with prepared alkaline water, after which the ground konjac is stirred into blocks, then boiled, chilled, and dried. After that, it takes a week before the dried konjac is finished.

In order to make the taste of every batch of dried konjac consistent, Tan Guangsheng used a pH tester to achieve standardized production. "The preparation of the alkaline water is very important; it determines whether the tofu has a chewy texture." Tan Guangsheng told the reporter that when he first started making konjac tofu, the preparation of the alkaline water relied entirely on experience. Later, by looking things up online, he found that a pH tester could measure the value, so he standardized the formula, and the konjac tofu he made had a chewier texture.

He Dongzhi is a konjac grower in Heye Village. She told the reporter that now she can earn a considerable income just by growing konjac at home. "In the past, to sell konjac we had to carry it to the market, and the price was cheap. Since the cooperative was established, the price has multiplied several times compared with before, and everyone is full of drive when growing konjac." He Dongzhi said with a smile.

At present, Tan Guangsheng's dried konjac is favored by consumers in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other places, but because of low output, his dried konjac is often in short supply, sometimes even selling out. Therefore, Tan Guangsheng has a new plan. "I hope to build a factory. After it is built, I will carry out online sales through Internet Plus and enter markets across the country, so that more people can eat the specialty products of Heye Town." Tan Guangsheng said that after he grows stronger step by step, he can then mobilize the left-behind elderly throughout Heye Town to grow konjac together and truly increase their income.