Leech Farming Builds an Entrepreneurial Spirit, Sincerity Paves the Road to Prosperity

Sun Licheng graduated in 2011 from Hubei University of Economics with a degree in Accounting. He once worked at a state-owned enterprise and also passed the banking exam, but in the end he did not stay in the big city. Instead, he resolutely chose the path of a village official. He is currently the deputy secretary of the Party General Branch and director of the Villagers' Committee of Dapeng Village, Guocun Town, Jiangdu District. The family farm project he founded won the 2014 Jiangsu Province and Yangzhou City Outstanding College StudentEntrepreneurship ProjectAward, and his leech farming project won the 2015 Jiangsu Province Outstanding College StudentEntrepreneurship ProjectAward. In 2016, he won the Excellence Award in the Jiangsu Province College Student Village Official Entrepreneurship Competition, the Second Prize in the Yangzhou City College Student Village Official Entrepreneurship Competition, and the First Prize in the Jiangdu District College Student Village Official Entrepreneurship Competition. He was named a Yangzhou City Outstanding Youth Entrepreneurship Star and was also selected for the 2015 national publicity list of outstanding college student entrepreneurship and employment role models organized by the Ministry of Education.

Pioneering a New Path - Founding Jiangdu's First College Student Village Official Family Farm

In June 2013, Sun Licheng founded Jiangdu District's first college student village official family farm integrating grain cultivation and aquaculture - Jiangdu District Dingrong Family Farm. The farm has a total grain area of 80 mu and an aquaculture area of 43 mu. He said: "My hometown has always practiced mixed farming of crabs and mandarin fish, and it is quite profitable. Very few people here have raised crabs, and no one has ever tried mixed farming of crabs and mandarin fish. I want to blaze a trail for everyone and serve as a demonstration."

At present, the overall plan for the family farm is river crab farming with mandarin fish as a supplementary species; the land is currently used for growing wheat and rice, and 300,000 yuan has already been invested. A second-phase expansion investment is expected at the end of the year, which will include building a fishing center and planting flowers and trees around the ponds. At the same time, about 10 mu of land will be transferred for greenhouse vegetable and fruit cultivation, with an estimated investment of about 300,000 yuan. In 2013, the river crab farming cost a total of 106,700 yuan, with sales of 160,000 yuan and a profit of about 50,000 yuan that year; in 2014, the river crab farming cost a total of 109,200 yuan, with sales of 290,000 yuan and a profit of about 80,000 yuan that year; in 2015, the river crab farming cost a total of 102,500 yuan, with sales of 250,000 yuan and a profit of about 90,000 yuan that year; grain cultivation yields a total annual income of about 2,500 yuan per mu, with costs of about 1,500 yuan per mu and a total profit of about 80,000 yuan. At the same time, the farm provides stable employment for 3 villagers each year and also hires many casual workers, which not only increases the village collective's income but also drives employment for many farmers.

Showing Their Talents - Leech Farming Leads the Masses onto the Road to Prosperity

In 2014, Sun Licheng learned that in recent years, due to the abuse of pesticides and chemical fertilizers and pollution from the "three wastes" of industry and agriculture, leech sources have dwindled. Relying solely on wild leeches could no longer meet the demand of the pharmaceutical industry. Artificial leech farming has great development prospects. So he made several trips to Yancheng, Gaoyou, and Baoying to conduct on-site investigations and research and learn leech farming techniques. Through market analysis and benefit assessment, in July 2014, he raised funds from multiple sources and decisively invested 200,000 yuan to build the first phase of a 400-square-meter leech farming pond. He said: "Once I set my mind on something, I must do it, and if I do it, I must do it well with all my heart." During the construction period, he rarely went home and devoted himself entirely to the site, unafraid of the scorching sun and undeterred by mosquito bites. Some people once worried that he was "tender-skinned, a scholar who could not endure such hardship," but he dispelled people's doubts with practical action and won the praise of the masses.

In April 2015, he invested another 900,000 yuan to expand the leech farming pond area to 3,000 square meters. The farm also provides stable employment for 5 farmers, and during each leech farming season, feeding and maintenance, and after the farming period, harvesting and drying, require a large amount of labor, which not only drives farmers' employment but also increases household income.

Under his demonstration and guidance, the number of local leech farmers has now increased to 9 households, with a total area of nearly 200 mu. In 2015, the town's total output was about 160,000 jin of leeches, with total sales of about 15 million yuan. He hopes that through his own experience he can help every household, continuously increase farmers' income, and lead villagers to prosperity together. He said: "I just want to use my demonstration to continuously introduce new projects and strengthen the masses' confidence and determination to become prosperous.