Raising Frogs Deep in the Mountains: Small Frogs Generate Big Wealth

Program Highlights: In order to raise stonefrogs, he trekked over mountains and across valleys to do research, spending a full year on preparations. The stonefrogshe bought for more than 1.6 million yuan were all dead within just one month of starting to raise them. With one clever method, he not only made money himself but also led many local farmers to prosperity together. What clever method did he come up with? How did he turn his life around?

As soon as the reporter arrived at Chen Xianyou's stone frog farm, he immediately led the reporter to see his stone frogs.

Chen Xianyou: Winter is almost here, they're about to hibernate, almost hibernating, so their activity level is low, not strong. So they're easier to catch. Look down here, there must be some down here. They're all in the grass.

Reporter: You can still catch them. This one's still quite active. Very slippery, hard to hold onto.

Reporter: Are they about to hibernate now?

Chen Xianyou: Yes, look.

Reporter: So when they're not hibernating, are they even harder to catch than this?

Chen Xianyou: Then it's incredible. They just dart right out.

Chen Xianyou explained to the reporter a method for catching stone frogs.

Chen Xianyou: Right here (pinch) the thigh area. Then it can't get away.

The stone frog's scientific name is Quasipaa spinosa (spiny-chest frog), named for the granular protrusions on the male frog's chest. In Longquan, the stone frog is a valuable food ingredient. At Chen Xianyou's farm, the reporter met a customer who had come to buy stone frogs.

Manager Cao Shibin: If there's a banquet, we need 40-50 jin, 40-50 jin a day. 40-50 jin a day. It's like this - if there's no banquet, for retail sales, we sell about 10 jin a day, 7 or 8 jin like that.

Manager Cao Shibin: Oh, there are plenty here. Good, here's one male, two males. These two males are big.

The reporter noticed that this customer preferred to buy male stone frogs.

Manager Cao Shibin: Look at this one, this is male, it grips very powerfully.

In nature, male stone frogs must tightly grip the female in flowing water during mating, so their front claws are more powerful.

Chen Xianyou: This is female.

Chen Xianyou: Look at this muscle, look at this front leg, see how developed the muscle is? This one is so small. They look the same size, right?

Reporter: Mm.

Chen Xianyou: This one doesn't grip much, see.

Manager Cao Shibin: This one grips very powerfully.

This customer bought 16 jin of stone frogs today, totaling more than 1,900 yuan. Chen Xianyou sells stone frogs weighing 2 to 4 qian at 120 yuan per jin. In 2014, Chen Xianyou sold more than 80,000 jin of stone frogs in a year, earning more than 10 million yuan. He also became the president of the local stone frog breeding association.

Fang Longwei: He is the leader of our (local stone frog) industry, leading our industry toward a bigger, broader market.

Wu Zongyuan: Currently this is the largest stone frog breeding base in Longquan City, and possibly the largest in Lishui City. In recent years, more than 50 households have developed here, and I think this is inseparable from the leadership of this flagship enterprise.

Now, Chen Xianyou is already the leader of the local stone frog industry. But few people know that just 4 years ago, when Chen Xianyou first started breeding, the stone frogs he invested 1.6 million yuan to purchase all died within just 1 month, and he nearly gave up.

Chen Xianyou: At that time, words couldn't express it. I kept it all bottled up inside; I couldn't even cry.

Deputy General Manager Ye Jianmei: Facing them (the stone frogs) every day was truly painful, torturous. At that time I just thought, once these all die, that's it, we won't raise them anymore.

How exactly did Chen Xianyou change all of this in four years?

Chen Xianyou was born right here. He had worked in Longquan City's porcelain industry for many years. In 1994, Chen Xianyou sold his porcelain factory, went to Shanghai to do construction engineering, and also opened chain hotels.

However, in early 2010, Chen Xianyou returned to Longquan City, and after returning he ran into the local mountains every day.

Reporter: Do you often walk this kind of place?

Chen Xianyou: Me, I used to. Yes, especially looking for water sources, they're everywhere, every mountain and stream I search like this.

What was Chen Xianyou looking for water sources in the mountains for? This goes back to an accidental discovery in early 2010. At that time, every time Chen Xianyou returned to Shanghai from his hometown, he would bring some local specialties to his friends in Shanghai, and among them, the stone frogs from his hometown were the most popular.

However, in early 2010 when Chen Xianyou was about to return to Shanghai, he suddenly found that stone frogs could no longer be bought. To not disappoint his friends, Chen Xianyou searched several local townships but still couldn't buy stone frogs.

Chen Xianyou: I searched many markets, and you couldn't find even one jin of stone frogs.

While looking for stone frogs, Chen Xianyou discovered that wild stone frogs were almost gone locally, which made him spot a business opportunity.

Chen Xianyou: Wild stone frogs are nearly extinct. There must be a huge business opportunity in breeding them, because we locals need to eat these stone frogs at wedding banquets, to give to relatives and friends, and after illness, and for children (learning to walk).

In the autumn of 2010, after the news that Chen Xianyou wanted to raise stone frogs spread, his friends all advised him to think it over.

Friend: As far as I know about stone frog breeding, in Longquan many people in earlier years failed at it through this entrepreneurial platform.

Friend: At that time we hadn't heard of any successful examples. Later when (Chen Xianyou) suddenly proposed doing this, I felt a bit worried for him, and also a bit strange.

However, Chen Xianyou had his own ideas.

Chen Xianyou: Others have already made enough money; if you follow behind others, this industry I think is simply not good to do. So the fewer people involved in this industry, this thing, the more I want to do it. Because the first bucket of gold is the easiest to dig.

Through research, Chen Xianyou learned that breeding stone frogs requires very good site and water sources.

Chen Xianyou: A place with good water doesn't necessarily have a good site for building, because some floods and flash floods will destroy the site, so my site must be chosen to have both a water source and a good site, and also not be afraid of flooding. On top of that, the environment must be a very secluded place.

In early 2011, Chen Xianyou spent more than 3 million yuan to build this stone frog breeding base covering more than 60 mu in Mudai Village, Shangyang Town, Longquan City. He also specially made a pipeline to channel mountain spring water from the mountain to his stone frog farm.