Farmer in Huanxian County, Gansu develops homemade sheep-raising formula, driving villagers to increase income and get rich

In early autumn, Su Xuefeng, a villager from Xueyuan Village, Shancheng Township, Huanxian County, Qingyang City, Gansu, was gathering up the corn stalks from the fields one by one. He told reporters that these are the main “rations” for the sheep after autumn.

Located in the hilly and gully region of the Loess Plateau, Huanxian County is the county with the largest poverty-stricken area and the deepest poverty level in Qingyang City. Local farmers have always had a tradition of raising sheep. After Su Xuefeng was discharged from the military and returned home to farm, “farming and raising sheep” also became his main livelihood.

“My parents raised sheep for most of their lives, yet life was still tight.” Su Xuefeng began trying to make money by raising sheep to change his impoverished situation.

The “first small trial” began when Su Xuefeng's father was raising more than 70 sheep, “switching from free-range to pen-feeding, from mixed rearing to classified rearing, and from a single alfalfa forage to mixed forage.” A year later, a smile appeared on Su Xuefeng's face. The lambs he raised could reach 35 kg in 5 months and became a “hot commodity” on the market.

In September 2011, Su Xuefeng learned from materials that corn ear silage technology had an obvious fattening effect. He did not hesitate and tried it immediately. The following year, he sold more than 300 sheep for slaughter and earned a net income of 140,000 yuan. Among them, 4 sheep sold for nearly 30,000 yuan, creating a local “myth” in which sheep prices were higher than cattle prices. Su Xuefeng suddenly became the village's sheep-raising “star,” and villagers came one after another to seek his advice.

“With the original feed, 2 jin of concentrated feed still had to be added every day. With corn ear silage forage, only half a jin needs to be added.” Su Xuefeng shared this successful experience with the surrounding villagers. “Separate pen-feeding, fixed meals and fixed amounts, and feed formula not only fatten quickly but also save time and feed.” Su Xuefeng's sheep-raising insights were called the “Su family formula” by the villagers. This formula brought Su Xuefeng an annual income of 300,000 yuan from raising sheep, and through sheep raising he became rich.

In helping villagers raise sheep, Su Xuefeng was “completely obedient” to his wife. Su Xuefeng's wife, Guo Hongxia, became a voluntary promoter, publicizing to villagers the experience of getting rich by raising sheep. Villager Su Xuecong came to “learn from experience.” After a month of standardized feeding and selection, the 9 sheep he raised were sold at a price 4 yuan per jin higher than the market price. Su Xuehui from the same village relied only on odd jobs to make a living. In 2011, Guo Hongxia persuaded him to farm and raise sheep and lent him 7 sheep. Over several years, Su Xuehui's sheep inventory reached more than 80, and his family had savings, built a new house, and even bought an agricultural tractor.

“Determine livestock by forage, reduce costs, select fine breeds, manage meticulously, and bring to market quickly.” Su Xuefeng summarized three successful sheep-raising models, and many breeders had an average annual income of more than 100,000 yuan. The “Su family formula” became the “secret to getting rich” for sheep raisers in Xueyuan Village, and Su Xuefeng became the most authoritative “technical adviser.”

In 2015, mutton prices remained sluggish, and farming households all wavered between “selling and raising.” When many farmers were selling sheep at a loss, the income of the sheep-raising villagers in Xueyuan Village, Shancheng Township, was increasing. At present, all 212 farming households in the two breeding cooperatives in Xueyuan Village use the “Su family formula” to raise sheep, with a sheep inventory of more than 7,900, averaging more than 30 per household, forming a sheep-raising industry chain of “cooperative + large households + scattered households.” Driven by this leading industry, Xueyuan Village achieved overall poverty alleviation that year.