Li Yongguan Leads Fellow Villagers to Prosperity Together

On the morning of November 13, under bright sunshine, beside Jinlan Avenue in Bohou Town, Lingao County, in Li Yongguan's honeysuckle planting base, some honeysuckle plants had already sprouted new buds, while others were about to grow tender leaves.

This place is continuously absorbing more and more impoverished households into employment. Enthusiastic about his hometown's development and contributing his own strength, Li Yongguan, a native of Lingao and a teacher at a university in Wuhan, is a thorough man of action.

Giving Up a University Job in Wuhan

Returning Home to Grow Water Spinach

Li Yongguan studied journalism at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and after graduation took a position at a well-known university in Wuhan. He had a good job that made his parents proud and his relatives beam.

However, a few years ago, upon learning that Duowen water spinach from his hometown Lingao was falling out of favor, Li Yongguan grew worried, and soon conceived the idea of returning home to help fellow villagers build the Duowen water spinach brand. He then began a two-year period of research and exploration.

In early 2014, after 11 years of making his way outside, Li Yongguan decided to resign from his job in Wuhan and return home to start a business.

Li Yongguan put all his savings into developing water spinach. In 3 months, he completed trademark registration and brand packaging design, and registered a company. Within 3 months of the company's founding, Li Yongguan had signed an order for 200,000 jin.

However, the 200,000-jin order was somewhat difficult for him to fulfill at the time.

First, vegetable farmers did not trust the distributors; second, because the water spinach planting area was not large at the time, there was still a gap to close before reaching the target.

To win the trust of the vegetable farmers, Li Yongguan decided to lead by example and plant 20 mu of water spinach himself, all using organic fertilizer, with standardized and large-scale management. After 45 days, the water spinach was harvested. Looking at the thick, tender-green, crisp, springy, and fragrant water spinach, customers praised it endlessly, and farmers willing to cooperate came in droves. Everyone planted water spinach together and completed the first large order on schedule.

At present, Li Yongguan's water spinach base in Toushen Village, Duowen Town, covers 170 mu, with more than 60 farming households participating in cultivation. Lingao is also planning to build a 500-mu water spinach demonstration base to guide more farmers toward standardized production.

This year, Li Yongguan also sold "Toushen Brand" water spinach to other provinces. The average purchasing price of water spinach at the field edge rose from more than 1 yuan per jin to more than 3 yuan, greatly boosting the villagers' confidence.

Introducing Honeysuckle Cultivation

Eager to Help Farmers Find Employment

While the Duowen water spinach brand was being built with great momentum, Li Yongguan was also thinking about how to combine farmer employment with local industry development. In order to help more farmers without an industry increase their income and to create new local business forms, after much thought, Li Yongguan introduced honeysuckle cultivation as well.

Recently, at a special poverty alleviation job fair held in Lingao County, Li Yongguan's honeysuckle planting project base won many farmers over to register as job seekers because the work location was close to home and the jobs offered were flexible.

According to Li Yongguan, the honeysuckle planting base has just started and covers only 200 mu, requiring about 100 workers. It is expected that within 5 years the base will expand to 50,000 mu and is expected to provide thousands of jobs. At the same time, a datura planting industry will also be introduced, dedicated to building the entire industrial chain, and striving to turn Lingao into a raw material base for China's traditional Chinese medicine industry.

At present, honeysuckle cultivation in Lingao has introduced advanced technology from outside the province, and professional technicians are stationed at the base to provide guidance. The first batch of honeysuckle has also begun to be planted, and Li Yongguan is full of confidence.

"Developing this industry will add a highlight to the development of Lingao's branded agriculture, and at the same time the enterprise will create more opportunities to help many nearby farmers find employment," Li Yongguan said. In the near future, the enterprise will absorb as many impoverished households as possible through poverty alleviation job fairs, and according to the specific circumstances of farming households, adopt various contract forms such as full-time and part-time work to provide farmers with opportunities to increase their income.