Tea farmer Tong Runsheng keeps up with the market by planting new tea varieties to boost income

    Tong Runsheng, a tea farmer in Tongjia Village, Shouchang Town, keeps up with the market and actively develops high-quality tea gardens with new varieties to achieve increased production and income. This year, the four mu of Longjing 43, a new variety he put into production, yielded Longjing tea that sells for as much as over 800 yuan per kilogram, six to seven times more profitable than traditional products. He told the reporter: "The economic benefits of the new variety are really good. This year I will develop another 40 mu and encourage villagers to plant more new varieties."

In the spring of 2006, Tong Runsheng used asexual propagation techniques for improved varieties to cultivate a batch of high-quality Longjing 43 tea seedlings and planted four mu of new tea garden. After three years of careful cultivation and management, this year the tea buds are thick and abundant, with a dark green color. Picking began in mid-March and ended in mid-April. As soon as the processed Longjing tea was put on the market, it was welcomed by customers, with prices as high as over 800 yuan per kilogram, and demand exceeded supply.

Tong Runsheng said that planting new tea varieties not only brings high prices and good profits, but the tea also sells very well. In contrast, some traditional tea products are gradually being neglected by the market and simply cannot compete. Only by keeping up with the market and planting and processing products that meet market demand can one achieve increased production and income.

Tong Runsheng has been engaged in tea production for more than twenty years, and his skill in roasting Longjing tea is well known throughout the local area.