Chai Huilong surprised his parents and fellow villagers when he chose to return to his hometown and farm the Chinese leek after he graduated from university. Ju Chuanjiang / China Daily |
When university graduate Chai Huilong turned down a well-paid job to return to the family farm, his parents were worried. But the young entrepreneur has proved farming can provide a prosperous future. Zhao Ruixue reports in Jinan. University graduate Chai Huilong, 24, made a small fortune from his farm last year, but his mother refuses to forgive him for returning to the small village he grew up in. "I would still prefer him to stay in the city because it is decent," says Cui Changyun, Chai's 50-year-old mother. In 2012, Chai declined an offer of a well-paid job in a city and instead decided to return to his hometown, Chaijia village, to farm the Chinese leek. But far from being delighted to have their son at home, Chai's decision was strongly opposed by his parents. "My mother cried for a week. She was afraid of being laughed at by our fellow villagers. To them, my returning means I have to live a very hard life as they do, but I have proved them wrong," Chai says. Chaijia village is about 60 km from Jinan, capital of Shandong province. Visitors to the village during the spring farming season may notice a defining characteristic - an absence of young men. "Men aged between 20 and 40 will not stay at home. They prefer to work in the city even though some of them can only earn about 1,000 yuan ($161) a month," Chai says. "It's not an impulsive decision," Chai says of his return. His four years of study in finance and international trade at Beijing Science and Technology University convinced Chai that his hometown has the potential to become a wealthy area. Chaijia is a village with over 30 years' experience of planting the Chinese leek. Of the 400 families in the village, 355 are responsible for planting 100 hectares of Chinese leek. In 2000, the village had its produce registered as Luxiang Pollution Free Leek at China's Agriculture Ministry, the first registered brand of Chinese leek. However the branding has done little to improve the farmers' lives.
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對于跳出農(nóng)門上了大學(xué)的農(nóng)村孩子來說,進(jìn)入都市往往是他們的夢想,而1989年出生的柴會龍卻放棄了年薪20萬的城市工作,大學(xué)畢業(yè)后回到家鄉(xiāng)跟父母種起韭菜,開始了他的家庭農(nóng)場新夢想。 大半年下來他的家庭農(nóng)場小有成就,今年春節(jié)前后賣了一季的韭菜就凈賺了30多萬。 盡管如此,柴會龍50歲的母親仍然會抱怨他回家鄉(xiāng)種菜。 “好不容易考上大學(xué),畢業(yè)后又回來種地。雖然掙了一些錢,可種地多累啊,也不體面,即便是收入少我還是愿意他在城市里工作。”柴會龍的母親崔長云說。 2012年7月,柴會龍從北京科技大學(xué)畢業(yè)后,決定放棄一家公司的總經(jīng)理助理職務(wù)和高薪酬,選擇回家創(chuàng)業(yè)種韭菜。當(dāng)他把這個決定告訴他父母時,遭到了雙親的強(qiáng)烈反對。 “我媽聽說我要回家種地,哭了一個星期。”柴會龍回憶說。 柴會龍告訴中國日報記者,在他們村見不到20歲到40歲之間的人,年輕人沒有選擇在家里種地的,大學(xué)生更不會回來,丟不起人。 “我回家創(chuàng)業(yè)的決定不是一時沖動。”柴會龍對記者說。 大學(xué)一年級時的職業(yè)規(guī)劃課上, 老師請每位學(xué)生給父母寫一封信,描述“四年之后你在哪里”。在這封信里,19歲的柴會龍寫道,如果四年之后,家鄉(xiāng)的韭菜還沒有走向全國,甚至出口國外,自己將回到家鄉(xiāng),實現(xiàn)這個夢想。 憑借著自己的調(diào)查和知識積累,柴會龍相信自己的村莊那一方沃土?xí)N出全國最好的韭菜。 章丘市柴家村,種植韭菜的歷史已有30多年,有1500畝特色品牌基地,355戶人家種韭菜。并于2000年在農(nóng)業(yè)部注冊了綠色無公害韭菜,但這個品牌并沒有給柴家村農(nóng)民帶來更多的利潤。 于是,柴會龍毅然決然帶著知識和資本回到家鄉(xiāng)創(chuàng)業(yè)。 |