The Story of Xu Haiying, a Woman of Strength in Kedong County, and Her Road to Wealth Through Cattle Farming

Xu Haiying, 50 years old, is a villager of Group 6, Dongfeng, Yugang Town, and she raises dairy cattle together with her husband. After more than ten years of unremitting effort, with the support of the county and township governments and the help of the county women's federation and relevant departments, she founded the Haiying Dairy Cattle Breeding Cooperative. From 2014 to the present, she raised more than 9 million yuan in funds to build a 2,000 sq m cattle barn, a 400 sq m hay shed, a 380 sq m milking room, a 2,086 sq m dairy cattle exercise yard, and 2,820 sq m of paved road. During the two years from 2014 to 2015, the cooperative's dairy cattle herd reached 360 head, with annual profits of 1.5 million yuan, helping 85 poor households, each increasing its annual income by 3,000 yuan on average. In June 2016, milk prices fell, and the cooperative began to transform, reversing its losses. At present, there are 120 head of beef cattle on hand. In 2017, the plan is to have 600 head of beef cattle on hand, and the preparations for putting them in the barn are complete; it is expected that before May 1, 600 head of beef cattle can be put in the barn.

Before developing dairy cattle farming, Xu Haiying, like most rural women, made a living by farming. In 1995, Xu Haiying raised funds to contract 300 mu of land, but a hailstorm wiped out almost everything, leaving her in debt. Stubborn by nature, Xu Haiying was not frightened off by the disaster. After working hard to pay off the debt, she came up with the idea of raising dairy cattle. In 2001, Xu Haiying used her only savings to buy one dairy cow, and by the end of that year she had recouped the cost. Having tasted the benefits, Xu Haiying strengthened her confidence in raising dairy cattle, and she kept at it for more than ten years.

In 2010, as the county party committee and county government offered more and more preferential policies for dairy cattle farming and milk prices kept rising, Xu Haiying thought about expanding the scale of her operation, but could not do so for lack of funds. In October of the same year, with the strong support of the county and town governments, Xu Haiying and her niece jointly applied for a 160,000 yuan small-sum guaranteed loan from the women's federation. Together with 350,000 yuan of self-raised funds, they built a 500 sq m standardized pasture and a 500 sq m milk station. They realized the integrated operation of pasture and milk station and embarked on a path of scientific and large-scale operation. The pasture took in 4 dairy cattle farming households, increasing the dairy cattle herd by 120 head. The establishment of the pasture and milk station not only solved the difficulty farming households had in delivering milk, but also guaranteed the quality of the milk source. In peak milk-producing season, the milk station could deliver 1.5 tons of fresh milk per day to Feihe Dairy, and that year it made a profit of 200,000 yuan. In July 2012, with Xu Haiying taking the lead, she and the farming households settled in the pasture jointly applied for a 300,000 yuan small-sum guaranteed loan from the women's federation, and built another 270 sq m pasture. The number of farming households settled in the pasture also increased to seven, and the pasture's dairy cattle herd reached 248 head. Over more than ten years, Xu Haiying's cattle farming business developed by leaps and bounds.

Her progress in business brought Xu Haiying commendations from higher-level governments many times. In 2010, Xu Haiying was recommended as a county people's congress representative. In 2012, she was named an advanced individual in Heilongjiang Province's "Double Study, Double Comparison" activity, a provincial-level "Six Prosperous Homes" demonstration household, and was awarded the honorary title of "Advanced Individual in Meritorious Service by Urban and Rural Women in Heilongjiang Province".

With both success in her business and honors to her name, Xu Haiying did not forget to lead her fellow villagers to wealth together. Xu Haiying encouraged villagers who wanted to raise dairy cattle to settle in the pasture with her and raise dairy cattle. She also shared without reservation the farming techniques and disease prevention experience she had accumulated over many years with the farming households. In the course of farming, she actively solved practical problems for the farming households and provided solid technical support for those settled in the pasture. She also founded the Haiying Dairy Cattle Breeding Cooperative, drawing in more farming households to join, and the scale of farming kept growing.

Led by Xu Haiying, the people of Dongfeng Village became more and more enthusiastic about raising cattle. In everyone's mind, cattle farming is not only a means of prospering the family and getting rich, but also an industry with sustainable development. Xu Haiying is the reassurance that gives them confidence to invest in this industry.