Fenggang's 4,000 Beehives Cultivate a New World of Poverty Alleviation and Prosperity
Beekeeper Zhu Kexiu observes the bees' activity.
"The fertile land of central Guizhou boasts fine scenery, bees fly hither and thither busy gathering flowers; why do farmers keep bees at all? To shake off poverty and build a moderately prosperous life." Over the past few days, while conducting interviews in the rural areas of Fenggang County, a melodious and gentle song echoed through the hills and fields. A song composed and sung by beekeepers themselves revealed the joy of farming households in growing rich and building a moderately prosperous life through beekeeping.
Spring rain patters down, and mist and clouds wrap around the mountains. Layer upon layer of verdant bamboo groves and forests, crystal-clear mountain springs, blossoming fruit trees and flowers, winding country roads... Recently, in Qiping Village, Tianqiao Town, Fenggang County, more than 20 hives of bees had just been delivered, and farming households busily claimed the bees they had purchased. At present, the county has more than 4,000 beehives, with more than 900 beekeeping households benefiting more than 3,700 people. In rural Fenggang, beekeepers have a sweet job: they chase the flowering seasons through the verdant deep mountains and green valleys, brewing pure, mellow, sweet honey, and with their diligent hands they brew a new world of poverty alleviation and prosperity.
As a typical mountainous ecological agriculture county, what development strategy should be chosen to speed up the journey toward moderate prosperity after crossing the subsistence line? Facing this question, Fenggang County combined the "Two Studies, One Action" learning and education campaign with the advancement of targeted poverty alleviation, vigorously implementing social poverty alleviation, industrial poverty alleviation and sector-based poverty alleviation. The county government allocated 6 million yuan to 6 poor villages to build bee-breeding poverty alleviation projects, rapidly expanding the county's beekeeping scale and bringing 420 registered poor households into beekeeping cooperatives. In recent years, Fenggang County has consistently adhered to the development approach of "building an ecological homeland and developing green industries," and has upheld the concept of developing while preserving the ecology and protecting the ecology while opening up. With the vigorous advancement of "creating a green environment, cultivating green bases, implementing green processing and building green brands," it has vigorously developed the beekeeping industry and embarked on a path of sustainable development featuring ecological industrialization and industrial ecologization.
Liu Bangcheng, a beekeeper in Liutang Group, Heshandu Village, Tianqiao Town, told this writer, "Last year my family kept 18 hives of bees and extracted 58 jin of honey. A visitor from Guiyang bought it all at 180 yuan per jin, bringing in 10,440 yuan. That's something I never would have imagined. Beekeeping is truly an excellent industry; it doesn't require much labor, and it brings wealth and income quickly. This year I plan to keep more than 30 hives." In Shuiyin Group, Guantang Village, Wangzhai Town, large-scale beekeeper Wang Jinxi was even more overjoyed. He did the math for this writer: My family kept more than 50 hives of bees and extracted 350 jin of honey, sold at 150 yuan per jin, bringing in 52,500 yuan; I sold 20 hives to poor households at 600 yuan each, earning 12,000 yuan. Last year, beekeeping alone brought in more than 70,000 yuan. Wang Jinxi told this writer that local farmers would have to pay 800 yuan per hive to buy bees elsewhere, but he charged them 200 yuan less per hive and also taught beekeeping techniques free of charge, all with the aim of supporting and encouraging everyone to grow rich through beekeeping.
Zhu Kexiu, a large-scale beekeeper in Shuiyin Group, Guantang Village, Wangzhai Town, invested 150,000 yuan in 2014 to build the 2,000-sq-m Fengyantou Apiary. Its current scale is more than 110 hives, with plans to keep more than 200 hives of bees. She uses modern, advanced beekeeping techniques and has also registered the "Fengyantou" trademark. The Fengyantou Apiary employs 5 managers and has driven employment for 14 people. Zhu Kexiu's husband, Wang Jinyu, has been engaged in beekeeping for more than ten years. To support the county's beekeeping industry, he uses Sundays and holidays to travel to various townships, voluntarily training more than 10 sessions in Tianqiao, Xinjian, Wangzhai, Tuxi and other townships, reaching more than 500 people.
Retired official Li Zhonglin specializes in beekeeping techniques. While investigating the beekeeping industry in Tianqiao Town, he saw that the whole town has dense forests, abundant flowers and trees, and clear mountains and waters. The hills are mostly covered with Vitex negundo var. cannabifolia and Chinese toon, so nectar sources are very abundant, with no pesticide contamination, making it suitable for developing the beekeeping industry. He volunteered to serve as Tianqiao Town's beekeeping technical adviser without taking any pay. To expand the beekeeping industry, Tianqiao Town established the Tianmi Honey Breeding Farmers' Professional Cooperative, which will introduce advanced equipment, standardize management of honey collection, testing, processing, packaging and sales, build an apiary covering 920 sq m, and transfer 210 mu of land to plant buckwheat, rapeseed, Chinese milk vetch and so on. Once completed, this apiary will help 286 households and 1,138 people grow rich through beekeeping.
"Thanks to County Mayor Wang's help for my family, he sent us 4 hives of bees. Now my family has 6 hives, and he even specially arranged for technicians to guide and help us, which changed our beekeeping model and quadrupled our household income," said Wang Xianzhong, a poor household in Damianpo, Heshandu Village.
Ren Sheng, Party Secretary of Tianqiao Town, told this writer that the town has now developed 1,138 beehives. This year it will receive 2 million yuan in beekeeping project funds from the Shanghai-Central Guizhou Liaison Group, to be implemented in the three villages of Heshandu, Pingtouxi and Qiping to develop the beekeeping industry, create 11 beekeeping demonstration sites, and purchase 1,400 hives of bees in batches. Next year, the town's beekeeping will reach more than 2,500 hives, truly making beekeeping a distinctive industry that lifts farmers out of poverty and increases their prosperity.
Ren Guangwen, who lives in Yonghe Town, keeps more than 80 hives of bees. He spends his years chasing the flowering seasons through the verdant deep mountains and green valleys, a typical "bee chaser." "This year all my family's honey sold out, bringing in more than 100,000 yuan in income. Life is much more comfortable than before, and our days are sweeter than honey. I truly thank the Party and thank the government!" Ren Guangwen said with emotion when this writer interviewed him. "Now I use square wooden beehives, which make it easy to keep the bees and collect the honey. Honey output has increased, and income has risen too," said Zuo Mingyang, a beekeeper in Yonghe Town.
During an interview at the home of Zhu Kexiu, a large-scale beekeeper in Shuiyin Group, Guantang Village, Wangzhai Town, walking into the apiary, the little bees buzzed as they flew in and out, all a bustle. "Developing the beekeeping industry has truly let beekeepers get a taste of its benefits. Although there's no worry about selling the products and prices are stable with a slight rise, we must make conscientious products and sell trustworthy products, and must not earn money by unscrupulous means." As she spoke, Zhu Kexiu lifted a honeycomb frame from the wooden hive. Looking at the plump honey on the frame, a satisfied smile appeared on her face.
"Big industries bring wealth; small industries lift people out of poverty. The bee-breeding cooperatives in each township should make full use of online platforms to promote Fenggang County's all-natural honey, form brand advantages and register corresponding trademarks. On this basis, Party committees and governments at all levels will further broaden sales channels. Through building online e-commerce platforms and offline sales outlets, and by making efforts both online and offline, they will help beekeepers sell their honey well, bring more poor households into cooperatives, and achieve poverty alleviation, prosperity and moderate prosperity through beekeeping," said Wang Jisong, Deputy Secretary of the Fenggang County Party Committee and County Mayor, during an investigation of the beekeeping industry.
Nowadays, with the establishment of beekeeping professional cooperatives in each township, more and more farming households are optimistic about the beekeeping industry and are purchasing bees from far and wide. It is understood that by the end of this year, the county's beekeeping will reach more than 6,000 hives, and output value will exceed 10 million yuan.