Analysis of Chinese Yam Planting Prospects, Profits and Yield per Mu

  On February 1, the fifth day of the first lunar month, amid the firecrackers welcoming the God of Wealth, the long-distance bus station in Wen County, Henan Province began to bustle. Travelers returning after the holiday carried in their hearts the warm blessings of their loved ones, and in their hands there was often no shortage of tiegun Chinese yam. "I brought back 6 boxes this year. Besides eating them myself, I also give them to friends in Wuhan to try." Zhang Yong, who has worked in Wuhan for more than ten years, takes some Chinese yam with him every year when he returns after Spring Festival.

  Wen County is the place of origin of tiegun Chinese yam. The Chinese yam produced here is high in quality, good in taste and rich in nutrients. "Wishing to praise jade extension but finding no good words, I am ashamed to discuss honey and mutton soup" is how the ancients praised Chinese yam. In recent years, as people's living standards have continued to rise, people's dietary needs have also shifted from "eating enough" to "eating well" and "eating healthily," and demand for high-quality specialty agricultural products is continuing to increase. Taking the market as the guide, advancing supply-side structural reform in agriculture and giving full play to specialty advantages can not only enrich people's dining tables, but also effectively promote increases in farmers' incomes.

  Now in Wen County, more and more farmers have given up corn to plant tiegun Chinese yam. Although the increase in market supply has affected the price of Chinese yam to some extent, it has not weakened farmers' confidence in planting. "This year the price of tiegun Chinese yam is not high, five or six yuan per jin. Last year it sold for more than 8 yuan. Although the price is lower, it is still much better than growing corn." In the view of Zhou Changge, who has been in the Chinese yam wholesale business for 8 years, the price of Chinese yam has already hit bottom, and people in their village will continue to plant Chinese yam after the wheat harvest. How much money can be made from planting one mu of Chinese yam? Chinese yam grower Qiao Zhongchao did the math: "Renting one mu of good land costs 1300 yuan a year, fertilizing and watering costs 700 yuan, labor costs 2000 yuan, for a total cost of 4000 yuan. One mu of land generally produces 2800 jin of Chinese yam. Calculated at this year's 5 yuan per jin, planting one mu can earn 10,000 yuan."

  With the spread of the internet in rural areas, some farmers have also begun trying to sell online. "After graduating from junior college, I came home, rented land to plant Chinese yam, and also opened an online store. I can sell some, but tiegun Chinese yam tends to break when sent by express delivery, and this problem has not yet been solved properly." Farmer Fan Qinghua, a member of the post-80s generation, said with a smile: "In large supermarkets in the city, our Wen County tiegun Chinese yam can sell for one or two tens of yuan per jin. You media outlets should help call for this. If someone takes the lead and trucks it out to sell, then we would earn even more."