Taipo Organic Farm Leverages Mechanical Expertise to Build an Ecological Recycling System
Hsu Fu-pao was a top student at National Taiwan University, where he studied mechanical engineering. Born in 1972, he originally worked as an engineer at a technology company in northern Taiwan before returning to his hometown to take up organic farming, now in his sixth year. After a car accident, he returned to his hometown of Tainan to recuperate, and that opportunity led him into agriculture.
Fu-pao's organic farming base is located in the Xipu area of Guiren, Tainan. In the early days, he mainly grew beef tomatoes, muskmelons, Meinong melons, Yu-nu cherry tomatoes, and four-season mangoes. Starting last year, he began producing "organic Hangzhou chrysanthemums," with a total output of about 10 kg; this year he expects to increase production by 5 to 6 times.
In fact, after returning to Tainan, Fu-pao did not immediately go into farming. He and his wife Miao-fen once entered the restaurant business, using the horticultural site run by his father to open a garden restaurant. Fu-pao said: although business was very good at the time, serving up to around 200 tables at peak, and although income looked good, as a restaurant outsider he suffered quiet losses over matters such as managing staff, and later his health also deteriorated, so he decided to switch to agriculture.
Hsu Fu-pao's father originally worked as a pharmacist, and in the 85th year of the Republic of China (1996) he began establishing the farm that Fu-pao now runs. At first his father ran a horticultural business, and later he handed this 1.3-hectare farm over to Fu-pao to manage, and of course he was also very supportive of Fu-pao taking up organic farming.
Composting process
This year Fu-pao wants to increase his Hangzhou chrysanthemum output. Last year's organic Hangzhou chrysanthemums were in short supply; one young woman bought 30 bottles in one go, each bottle 50 grams, sold for only 200 yuan. Later they learned that outside, organic Hangzhou chrysanthemums of the same specification were selling for 1,000 yuan, so that young woman who bought 30 bottles made a big profit... Therefore, besides adjusting the price, this year he also wants to focus on organic Hangzhou chrysanthemums and produce different strains of them, making his products more competitive.
Fu-pao's dedication and hard work have not been in vain. This year he represented Tainan City in the 103rd year (2014) "Agricultural Management Knowledge Sharing Competition" and took third place nationwide; a total of outstanding agricultural figures from 17 counties and cities across the country competed, and with such a result, Fu-pao said modestly: we farmers are very busy, but for the sake of our Tainan we still had to give it our all. Although it was only third place, I still feel honored, and it was all thanks to everyone's hard work and help!
Dapu Organic Farm: https://www.facebook.com/Dapufarm