Tiny Sea Buckthorn Becomes Golden Fruit of Wealth for Farmers in Youyu
“This year the sea buckthorn is growing well, and the purchase price is high too. We can sell more than 300 yuan worth of sea buckthorn from just one day of picking. This is truly the 'golden fruit' of wealth for us farmers!” On November 7, when reporters met Wang Zhenwei and his wife, farmers from Youyu County who had just sold their sea buckthorn, they looked very excited about the good harvest.
That day in Youyu, reporters spotted farm vehicles loaded with sea buckthorn speeding past one after another. In the yards of the major sea buckthorn processing enterprises, there was also a constant stream of traffic, with farmers queuing up to sell the sea buckthorn they had just picked……
“This year, because selling sea buckthorn berries brings considerable income, the farmers' enthusiasm for picking and selling sea buckthorn berries is higher than ever. There are quite a few people like Wang Zhenwei who pick and sell sea buckthorn berries to our company. Once our comprehensive utilization project, with a total investment of 350 million yuan, is completed, it will form an industrial chain with an annual processing capacity of 10,000 tons of sea buckthorn fruit-bearing branches and increase farmers' annual income by 20 million yuan. By then, sea buckthorn will become strings of money for farmers to get rich.” When it comes to sea buckthorn, Cao Man, manager of Saishang Lvzhou Beverage and Food Co., Ltd., speaks with encyclopedic familiarity.
In order to cultivate sea buckthorn into a sustained source of income growth for farmers, in recent years Youyu County, relying on its regional advantages, has planted sea buckthorn on a large scale, as it has strong adaptability and high economic value, and has carried out scientific renovation and management of sea buckthorn forests. This has not only increased yields but also made it easier for farmers to pick, giving farmers one more channel to increase their income. At the same time, they have also actively attracted investment and introduced a large number of sea buckthorn processing enterprises such as Saishang Lvzhou Beverage Co., Ltd., Huiyuan, and Lantian Beverage, relieving farmers of worries about selling sea buckthorn. Now Youyu's sea buckthorn industry is developing rapidly and healthily, gradually taking shape at scale, not only winning benefits for local enterprises but also providing local farmers with employment platforms and opportunities to get rich. (Reporter Ma Zhanfu