Under-forest native chicken farming paves the way for farmers to increase income and prosper
Arriving at Luo Yongde's mountain under-forest farm in Jianshan Village, Banka Township, Yongde County, the warm sunlight filters through the leaves. Not a single chicken is in sight, yet the crowing of chickens can be heard from time to time. Not far away, several native chickens with bright plumage are foraging leisurely and freely in the woods.
At Luo Yongde's whistle, a bag of corn is scattered out. One after another, native chickens with glossy feathers come flying in flocks from the trees, the slopes and the woods, scrambling for the food scattered on the ground. "These silkie chickens are free-range. They are fed corn in the morning and evening, and the rest of the time they are left to peck at the insects and grass on the ground." Luo Yongde said as he fed them, explaining to us that the more the chickens move, the stronger their resistance and the healthier they are.
Luo Yongde, 36 years old this year, is a shrewd and capable man. Previously, he worked in transport and as a migrant worker. "I worked at a broiler chicken farm in Anning, Kunming City, where I learned broiler breeding and epidemic prevention techniques. As people's living standards improve, more and more people pursue green consumption. It occurred to me that our area is located in the buffer zone of the national-level Daxueshan Nature Reserve, with vast forest land and clear mountains and waters, so raising native chickens would certainly bring good returns." Luo Yongde explained his original intention for raising chickens.
In 2013, Luo Yongde returned to his hometown of Jianshan Village in Banka to develop under-forest farming of mountain silkie chickens, which drew great attention from the township Party committee and township government. They helped him secure more than 300,000 yuan in support funds from various departments at the county level, build a chicken house of more than 600 sq m, purchase two incubators, install electricity for production and daily life, put up netting in his own 120 mu of forest land, and select fine mountain silkie chickens from various places... Luo Yongde's under-forest farm was officially launched.
From seed selection, incubation, epidemic prevention to disinfection, Luo Yongde is meticulous in every step of under-forest farming of mountain silkie chickens. Thanks to careful tending and proper management, combined with the fresh air of the forest land, the continuous streams among the trees and the pollution-free natural ecological forest environment, the mountain silkie chickens he raises forage freely in the vast woods for grass seeds, insects and Chinese medicinal herbs scattered beneath the trees, drink natural mountain spring water, and are additionally fed five grains at regular times. With a large range of activity, every one of them grows well.
Luo Yongde's silkie chickens take about 6 months from chick to market. The time to reach finished chicken stage is more than 3 months longer than that of ordinary chickens fed with feed. However, due to the excellent growing environment, firm muscle, low fat content and delicious taste, the finished chickens are deeply welcomed by major restaurants and consumers in Baoshan, Lincang and the county seat. In 2015, the silkie chicken flock reached 14,000 birds on hand, and the income from selling silkie chicken chicks and finished chickens reached 1.2 million yuan, with a net income of more than 300,000 yuan.
"I plan to invest another more than 1 million yuan to buy 6 incubators, hatch 360,000 high-quality chicks per year, and achieve a net income of more than 1 million yuan from selling chicks, finished chickens and eggs." Luo Yongde said.
Getting rich all by oneself is no great skill. Luo Yongde also motivated more than 10 other villagers in Banka Township, including Lu Xiaoliang and Yang Shangyi, to rely on under-forest farming of mountain silkie chickens, earning an annual income of around 100,000 yuan. "I've dug at the land for most of my life and still couldn't get enough to eat or wear. I never thought that young brother Luo would come back and fatten our wallets." said 60-year-old villager Yang Shangyi emotionally. "Young brother Luo is truly generous. When he heard that I also wanted to do under-forest farming, he warmly taught me the techniques for under-forest farming of mountain silkie chickens." Last year, Yang Shangyi's family sold nearly 4,000 mountain silkie chickens, with a net income of more than 90,000 yuan.
"The market volume is large, so supply must keep up; the market has risks, so they must be kept under control." During the interview, Cha Yuanke, Party secretary of Banka Township, said, "Drawing on the successful experience of Luo Yongde's under-forest farming of ecological silkie chickens, the Banka Township Party committee and government plan to focus support before 2020 on 10 under-forest farming households each with more than 10,000 birds on hand per year and an annual income of more than 100,000 yuan, establish and improve an under-forest farming association, achieve product-supermarket linkage, build brands, expand scale and open up markets, so as to boost the whole township's poverty alleviation efforts."