In order to encourage young people to return to their hometowns and help poor families in remote rural areas to become self-reliant, the Christian Mustard Seed Association has cooperated with enterprises to plan a team of youth farmers, renting 1 hectare of land in Yuanchang Township, Yunlin County, and planting Hualien No. 26 Fengdao Rice Stew Rice. On the 12th, a “from land to table” harvest celebration event was held, where stewed rice and pizza were cooked on-site in the farmland. Two young farmers in their 20s appeared to speak from their own experience, encouraging more young people to return to their hometowns and practice friendly farming and sustainable Yunlin agriculture.
According to the latest statistics from the Ministry of the Interior, among the 20 towns in Yunlin County, 17 have a population over 65 years old that accounts for more than 20%, and the elderly support ratio reaches 30.37%, ranking fourth in Taiwan. How to allow young people to return home and stay in their hometowns, and middle-aged and elderly people to stay in their hometowns? The continued investment of labor force has become the key to future development. Therefore, the Mustard Seed Association joins hands with Lian Mining Enterprises to launch the “Youth Farmers Incubation Program” to promote friendly agriculture through veteran farmers mentoring teams of young farmers.
24-year-old young man Xiaoting (pseudonym) and 23-year-old young farmer Amu (pseudonym) participated in the incubation project and were responsible for planting 1 hectare of Hualien No. 26 Fengdao stewed rice. They sown in August this year. The harvest was originally expected to take 100 days, but unexpectedly they encountered Four typhoons disrupted the situation, and it took them 114 days to harvest. Although the process was hard, seeing the rice they planted turned into risotto, pizza and other delicacies made them feel fulfilled, which also became their motivation to persevere.
Amu once interrupted his studies due to an autoimmune disease. After joining the project, he learned about the real challenges of farming from working in the fields and discovered the potential of technology in agriculture. Xiaoting used to be alienated from interpersonal relationships due to psychological trauma. Now he finds a sense of accomplishment in field work and gradually gets out of the slump.
Li Zhaojia, CEO of the Mustard Seed Association, said that allowing young people to create local businesses from land to table is one of the purposes of the Mustard Seed Association. In the future, the Mustard Seed Association will continue to train young people and provide job opportunities, and work with local companies to build a complete industrial chain. Thanks to Liancai Enterprise, Fude Qiaoxin Social Welfare Charitable Foundation, and Yuanchang Township Mayor Li Mingming for their support, we can integrate production and marketing with talent cultivation to help those in need in the community to be self-reliant.
Liao Ziyi, manager of Liancai Enterprise, pointed out that Hualien No. 26 Fengdao Stewed Rice was planted this time using a low-density planting method. Although the yield is only one-third of ordinary rice, it improves the quality and market value of the rice and reduces the burden on the land. In the future, the planting area will be expanded to 5 hectares, combining ecological environment, food safety and social responsibility to create more value and hope for local industries.
