A young man from Jiaxing returns home to start a business, relying on a six-word mantra
Cai Jianhui
[Editor's note] This is an era in which young talents emerge one after another. Age and experience are no longer decisive factors, which allows young people with abundant vitality and creativity to stand out even more. These outstanding individuals forge ahead in various fields, "achieving merit" or "establishing their words" earlier, and become the well-deserved protagonists of this era.
They guide young people of the same generation to advance to higher ground, leading the style of the times through action. They inspire young people, inspire dreams, and inspire countless "selves." To this end, the Zhejiang Online news website will, starting today, introduce their deeds one after another and call them "Youth Leaders."
"Revere heaven, revere earth, revere people," Cai Jianhui sums up his farming experience this way.
5 years ago, 29-year-old Cai Jianhui gave up a well-paid job in the city and returned to his hometown, Zhuangshi Village, Fengqiao Town, Nanhu District, Jiaxing City, to contract 468 mu of land together with his partners and begin his rural entrepreneurial journey.
Today, his team's annual income has reached three to four million yuan, and at the same time, they also help fellow villagers increase their income: farm one piece of land, earn two incomes.
Revere heaven, revere earth, revere people
The "six-word mantra" for being a farmer
Cai Jianhui's company mainly grows fruits such as grapes, honey peaches, and melons, as well as some vegetables and rice. At the beginning of the business, Cai Jianhui thought that as long as modern industrialized methods were used, natural factors could be ignored, good products could be grown, and good prices could be fetched. But he eventually found that he was wrong: even in modern agriculture, factors such as natural conditions, soil, and labor still constrain the development of the industry.
During the entrepreneurial process, they experienced huge blows caused by extreme weather such as typhoons, rainstorms, cold waves, and droughts, and they also witnessed the severe damage to soil caused by previously unreasonable farming methods. "When we first contracted the land, some of it would not even grow grass," Cai Jianhui recalled of the situation at the time. He knew that many people had previously pursued high yields single-mindedly and overused chemical fertilizers and pesticides, ultimately causing soil compaction and loss of fertility.
Now, while vigorously promoting mechanization, he implements a strict management system. Fruit and vegetable varieties are rotated every year to balance soil fertility; during farming, biological and physical pest control techniques such as insect-proof nets and insect-killing lamps are used as much as possible to reduce pesticide use; when fertilizing, more organic fertilizer and less chemical fertilizer are used to effectively protect soil fertility. "We also cooperate with some livestock farmers. We provide straw, vegetable leaves, and fruit peels, and they provide organic fertilizer," Cai Jianhui said. In this way, waste is effectively utilized, and both sides benefit.
During the interview, 34-year-old Cai Jianhui repeatedly mentioned his "six-word mantra": revere heaven, revere earth, revere people. In his view, even modern agriculture is still affected by many factors such as weather and the natural environment, and land remains an important foundation for carrying out agricultural activities. Respecting nature, protecting arable land, and striving to help fellow villagers accept new agricultural thinking are what he has always been doing.
Cai Jianhui upholds the six-word mantra "revere heaven, revere earth, revere people" in agriculture
Farm one piece of land earn two incomes
Leading fellow villagers to get rich through science and technology
This year, Cai Jianhui and his team did one more thing: while selling their own products, they also helped neighboring villagers sell specialties such as honey peaches through e-commerce, group buying, and other channels.
While getting rich himself, Cai Jianhui did not forget to lead fellow villagers to increase production and income together. Most of the land of Cai Jianhui's company is contracted from nearby villagers. In the past, when farmers farmed their own land, they earned little and put in a lot, and more and more people chose to go to the city to work, leaving only the elderly to stay at home.
Starting five years ago, Cai Jianhui and his team contracted 468 mu of surrounding land and hired local villagers to help farm it. Cai Jianhui said the company now has dozens of machines of various sizes, and new products will be purchased recently as well. Greenhouses, underground water and fertilizer application pipe networks, and other facilities are all complete, but labor is still an indispensable factor.
"We signed an agreement with the village to pay 800 jin of rice per mu per year, and it increases every year. At the same time, villagers who work at the company earn 20,000 to 30,000 yuan a year, with normal rest days, and overtime pay if they work overtime." Today, the elderly who remain in the village work at Cai Jianhui's company, still farming the familiar piece of land, but at the same time they can earn two incomes.
When asked about his view of future agricultural development, Cai Jianhui blurted out eight words: the prospects are very good, the process is very hard. Cai Jianhui said that only after starting an agricultural business did he realize the hardship of farming, but he did not give up because of it. In his view, modern agriculture has broad development prospects, and technology is gradually transforming agricultural planting methods. Today, fellow villagers have also begun to gradually accept his farming philosophy and continue to cultivate and get rich together with him in the agricultural field.