The farming story of free-range chicken farmer Ren Zhaochang

    Recently, a reporter walked into Nigong'ao in Tuci Town and from afar saw many free-range chickens being raised in an orange orchard. It is reported that this is the Hongyu Farm founded by villager Ren Zhaochang 6 years ago, and more than 6,000 free-range chickens are currently being raised there.

    "My free-range chickens are in short supply on the market. The most recent batch of free-range chickens was flown in from Guangzhou in July this year, ready to be sold around the Chinese New Year, and it is estimated that they can bring in more than 100,000 yuan," Ren Zhaochang proudly told the reporter. He has been raising free-range chickens for 6 years. At first he raised 2,000, and then the number grew year by year to 6,000. He said that over the years, with guidance from experts and through teaching himself by going online and reading books, he has already become proficient in free-range chicken farming methods. The free-range chickens he raises generally take 6 months, nearly 3 months longer than free-range chickens on the market, so the muscle fibers are relatively well developed and chewy. Free-range chickens on the market are generally fed complete formula feed, while his chickens are fed complete formula feed for the first two months and mainly farm-style coarse grains for the last 4 months. He has more than 30 mu of orange orchard, and the free-range chickens have a large space and a long time to roam, so the meat of chickens that exercise all year round is even more delicious.

    With such a large scale of free-range chicken farming, it is somewhat difficult for most people, and for Ren Zhaochang it is even less simple. That is because in 1990 he used the wrong medicine when he was sick, which caused his two legs to feel uncomfortable all the time, and it was only the next year that an examination found he had bone necrosis. Ren Zhaochang said that he had received treatment in many places such as Ningbo and Hangzhou, but with little effect. Since then, the pain in both legs has often made it impossible for him to sleep, and especially on rainy days, moving around is even more inconvenient. But he was not defeated by the illness, and has always worked to overcome the pain and various difficulties for the business he started. Ren Zhaochang said that 2005 was the most difficult year in his free-range chicken farming career. First, a typhoon blew over the original chicken shed and crushed more than 700 chickens to death, and in the second half of the year he was affected by avian influenza, so the chickens could not be sold. "So how did you get through these difficult times?" Ren Zhaochang smiled and said, "Just tough it out!"