Female Rare-Bird Farmer Leads Villagers to Prosperity
"The newly built pig farm has just been put into use, and I still need to hatch more chicks to give out to the farmers. The eggs from the cooperative members' homes also need to be collected in time... I've really been too busy these days." On April 1, in Yiping Township, Ebian Yi Autonomous County, Liao Lihua, a farming business owner who had just finished feeding the pheasants, said this.
"Don't judge her by her limited education; she is hardworking and capable, and she can lead all of us to earn money." This is how local villagers evaluate Liao Lihua. Liao Lihua is a native of Yiping Township. In 2004, she left her hometown for Jinkouhe District in Leshan City to sell rice noodles, and with the help of technicians from the animal husbandry department, she set up a pig farm, feeding the pigs with leftovers from the rice noodle shop. After a period of exploration, her pig-raising skills became increasingly proficient, and she accumulated some funds.
Having become prosperous, Liao Lihua did not forget her fellow villagers. In 2011, she returned to her hometown and established a company, opening a food processing factory; in 2012, taking advantage of the good ecological environment of her hometown, she also began raising specialty products such as royal chickens, pearl guinea fowl, pheasants, and turkeys. In the same year, Liao Lihua established the Ebian Lihua Agricultural Science and Technology Development Cooperative, developing 20 member households, giving them chicks to raise free of charge, and buying back eggs and chickens. As the scale of breeding expanded, Liao Lihua sold more than 20,000 pheasants and more than 6,000 boxes of eggs in 2015, and also sold more than 40,000 kg of pork products to Shanghai, Guangzhou, and other places, achieving an annual output value of more than 2 million yuan, driving more villagers to prosperity.
After villager Ding Wanxiang was injured while working away from home, he could no longer do heavy work. Just as he was worrying about making a living, Liao Lihua invited him to join the cooperative and let him take home pheasant chicks to raise under the cooperative's guidance. "After they grow up, the cooperative buys them back, so there's no worry about selling the chickens, and no running around either." Ding Wanxiang said that last year his family raised 1,600 ring-necked pheasants and earned more than 100,000 yuan. "The cooperative often invites technicians to explain breeding techniques and precautions to everyone for free. If there's anything we don't understand, we go ask Liao Lihua. She is kind and willing to help, and the villagers all trust her." Ding Wanxiang said that this year he plans to expand his breeding scale and raise some other varieties as well.
Today, the cooperative's membership has grown from the original 20 households to 118 households, radiating and driving more than 200 surrounding villager households, with annual breeding of more than 100,000 rare birds and production of more than 100,000 eggs. Households raising rare birds have increased their annual income by more than 7,000 yuan on average. It is reported that this year even more villagers will join the cooperative.
"Women are not so impatient by nature, and they are more resilient in the face of difficulties and failure. Once they set their minds on something, they can stick with it. In recent years, organizations at all levels have paid considerable attention to women's entrepreneurship, and there are also many preferential and support policies. I actively sought policy support, which solved quite a few difficulties on the path of starting a business." Speaking of entrepreneurship, Liao Lihua believes that women have their own unique advantages. She said that for the company to develop and for the villagers to become prosperous, it is still necessary to take the path of diversified development. Her newly built pig farm has just been put into use, and she plans to raise 150 sows and produce 4,000 piglets for market each year. By then, whether villagers raise pigs or rare birds, she can provide a "one-stop" service from breeding to processing and sales, so that fellow villagers can earn money without even leaving the village.