Specialty breeding: what to raise? Keeping an eye on the market is key

Opening words: Because the specialty breeding industry offers considerable economic returns, it is now increasingly favored by farmers. Some farmers raise masked palm civets, some raise porcupines or sika deer, and some raise giant salamanders. Some farmers have become rich through specialty breeding. However, constrained by factors such as the market and technology, some farmers have also encountered sales problems, and some were forced to change careers after losing money. In order to give the vast number of farmers a rational judgment and correct choice regarding this industry, this newspaper is launching the "Reflections on the specialty breeding industry" series of reports starting today. Please stay tuned.

In Quzhou's specialty breeding industry, Wang Longchang can be considered a success.

One day in early November, the reporter came to Wucun, Hecun Town, Jiangshan City, and saw several houses built on a small hillside. Many porcupines and masked palm civets were being raised in the houses, and dozens of yellow muntjacs were being kept in another tree-planted area.

"At my farm, the largest number is masked palm civets, with more than 1,600." Wang Longchang, head of Rongchang Specialty Breeding Family Farm, told the reporter that the farm used to be named Jiangshan Rongchang Wildlife Breeding Farm, and was renamed only this year.

After being laid off,

he traded wild hares

The 52-year-old Wang Longchang's hometown is in Santang Village, Hecun Town.

In 1979, he "took over the job" and went to work at an enterprise under the Jiangshan Second Light Industry Bureau. After 1993, because the enterprise went bankrupt, Wang Longchang became a laid-off worker. "At that time, I only received two years of living expenses. To make a living, I had to pedal a tricycle together with my wife." The hardships of life can be imagined. After a year of hard work, the couple earned only more than 10,000 yuan, just enough for living expenses.

Later, through a friend's introduction, Wang Longchang went into the business of buying wild hares. He said: "At that time, a jin of wild hare in Jiangshan City sold for only 1.5 yuan, while in Ningbo it sold for five or six yuan." In the second half of each year, Wang Longchang went to mountainous areas to buy wild hares, then sold them to Ningbo through friends. Working for five or six months, he could still earn seven or eight thousand yuan.

"I do business according to the rules, and I even specially obtained a wildlife business operation and utilization license." Wang Longchang said that without a license, it would be illegal. After several years of dealing in wildlife, Wang Longchang gradually gained a clear understanding of the market and set up a purchasing point in Jiangshan's urban area. "Now this purchasing point is still operating. I mainly sell the wildlife I purchase to Guangdong, Hunan, and other places." Because of the relatively large business volume, he can earn 300,000 yuan a year.

With sales channels,

he then set up a breeding farm

After more than ten years in the business, because wildlife resources were increasingly dwindling, Wang Longchang thought of going into breeding himself. In 2011, he transferred more than 50 mu of mountainous land in Wucun, Hecun Town, invested more than 1 million yuan, and set up Rongchang Wildlife Breeding Farm.

Before setting up the breeding farm, Wang Longchang also made special trips to specialty breeding farms in Hunan, Guangxi, Shanxi, Jiangxi, and other places to visit and learn from their experience. In the first year, he purchased several dozen porcupines and more than 200 masked palm civets.

"The porcupines were purchased from Fujian. A breeding pair, one male and one female, costs 5,000 yuan." He said that porcupines mainly eat corn, masked palm civets eat pig feed with some added fish meal and calcium powder and the like, and yellow muntjacs eat green grass and corn.

Wild animals have strong disease resistance. As long as they are vaccinated, they generally do not get sick. After patient breeding, his farm now has more than 200 porcupines. Although yellow muntjacs are relatively difficult to domesticate because they are timid and afraid of strangers, 20 were bred last year, and there are more than 50 in total. The largest number is masked palm civets, which have increased from more than 200 earlier to more than 1,600.

When the reporter walked into the breeding farm, he saw that two two-story buildings were full of masked palm civets. On one floor, bricks were used to divide 70 small rooms. The small rooms were only 2 sq m in size but housed three or four masked palm civets each. In another single-story house, a room of 16 sq m housed 25 masked palm civets. "These masked palm civets are female, so they are larger. One is about 10 jin. They were just introduced from Shanxi and will give birth next year." Wang Longchang said that a masked palm civet gives birth once a year, with three young per litter. These 300 females can produce quite a few young masked palm civets.

"On the market, masked palm civets have already gained consumer recognition. However many are available, that many can be sold. Generally, they are easiest to sell when raised to about 12 jin. By the end of the year, one jin sells for 130 yuan to 140 yuan." Although Wang Longchang has bred more than 1,600 masked palm civets, he is still reluctant to sell them. At present, he is still mainly expanding the breeding scale, and this year he is building another house for raising masked palm civets.

Keeping an eye on the market,

breeding according to demand

Wang Longchang analyzed that in specialty breeding, one should choose which species of animal to raise according to market demand. For example, porcupines fetched a good price the year before last, but this year the price for commercial porcupines is ordinary, selling for 120 yuan per kilogram. This is mainly because the sales volume of porcupines on the market is not large, because porcupines have a certain odor, and the consumer market has not yet been fully opened up.

This year, he sold about 50 porcupines, with an average price of 1,600 yuan each. As for yellow muntjacs, they are generally raised to 10 kilograms before being marketed. "When expensive, one jin sells for 100 yuan; now it is only 60 yuan." Wang Longchang said that many people eat yellow muntjac, and it sells very well. His breeding farm has only more than 50 yellow muntjacs. In pursuit of large-scale breeding, Wang Longchang is also reluctant to sell them and mainly focuses on reproduction. "This amount is still not enough to sell." Wang Longchang said that the reason he dares to engage in large-scale breeding is mainly that he has sales channels and breeds according to market demand. Nearly 20 years of experience in dealing in wildlife has enabled Wang Longchang to build a considerable sales network.

"One issue that farmers need to note is that raising wild animals requires obtaining a 'wildlife domestication and breeding license'." Wang Longchang spent 8 months obtaining this domestication license. To build Jiangshan's largest specialty breeding farm, he has so far invested a total of 4.5 million yuan.

Reporter Hu Zongren, correspondent Yu Jingke