Native chicken farming helps farmers cast off poverty

"My chicken farm can raise three batches of chickens a year, about 5,000 birds per batch, and I can earn a net income of more than 50,000 yuan a year." At the chicken farm of Yi Jiaqin, a villager in Balitan Village, Hefengqiao Township, Shangcheng County, when talking about her farm's income, Yi Jiaqin's joy was beyond words: "My family could cast off the 'poverty hat' so quickly, and I truly have to thank the Xingfu Ecological Breeding Professional Cooperative for its help!"

Yi Jiaqin was once a well-known poor household in the village. She originally had a happy family, but an accident eight years ago made her lose her beloved husband. The family's main breadwinner suddenly fell, her two sons and one daughter were still young, and the family, having lost its main source of income, suddenly fell into hardship. Three years ago, with the help of the Xingfu Ecological Breeding Professional Cooperative, Yi Jiaqin took out a loan of 50,000 yuan and built a medium-sized chicken farm. From then on, the whole family's life gradually improved, and last year they even built a 240 sq m two-story house, completely escaping poverty.

The Shangcheng County Xingfu Ecological Breeding Professional Cooperative that Yi Jiaqin mentioned was established in 2012, located in Balitan Village, Hefengqiao Township, covering an area of 370 mu. It is a large comprehensive chicken farm integrating hatching, brooding and breeding, hatching and raising more than 60,000 chicks each month. At present, it has established 27 large and medium-sized ecological chicken branch farms and 7 brooding farms in various townships of the county, providing 280,000 chicks annually and helping more than 700 poor households in 20 poverty-stricken villages across 19 townships of the county increase their income and become better off.

"The cooperative provides poor households with high-quality brooded native chicks on credit. In Balitan Village alone last year, more than 100 poor households took in more than 40,000 high-quality brooded native chicks on credit, and that year each household was able to increase its income by more than 3,000 yuan." Hu Pengfei, chairman of the cooperative, said that the cooperative buys back the grown chickens in a unified way, giving farmers "zero risk" in sales. Through free training in breeding techniques, it has cultivated a group of large-scale, high-benefit poor demonstration households. It also uses typical examples to lead the way and demonstration to drive development, leading poor households to work together, achieving the practical effect of "lighting one lamp and illuminating a large area."

"The cooperative plans from 2017 to 2020 to build 100 ecological farms in poverty-stricken villages throughout the county, raise 500,000 native chickens annually, achieve a net income of 10 million yuan, drive 1,000 poor households to escape poverty and increase their income, and make new contributions to the poverty alleviation work." Regarding future development, Hu Pengfei is full of confidence.