Poor farms profit growing crop from Andes
Source: Xinhua |
December 25, 2012, Tuesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
RATHER than abandoning his rural home in the mountains of Shanxi Province to do hard, manual labor in a big city, Mao Cunlin, 57, farms at home, earning more than his migrant worker son.
Quinoa, a grain-like crop from the Andes known for its nutritious edible seeds, has brought prosperity to Mao and other farmers in the Luliang Mountains.
Known as "a food for the poorest of the poor," quinoa has been a staple in Latin American and South American countries for thousands of years. The so-called "Mother Grain's" nutritional value, however, was not fully appreciated until the 1980s, when it was found to be rich in protein, magnesium and iron, as well as a good source of dietary fiber, phosphorus and calcium.
The high-protein food, related to spinach and beets, gained worldwide popularity as appetites for organic and whole foods have expanded in recent years. Bolivia, for example, raked in US$64 million from quinoa exports in 2011, spurring a cultivation boom.
Mao grew up in one of the poorest regions in northern China, where generations of people have suffered from poverty largely caused by the harsh environment. He spent much of his life not even knowing about the Andes.
In the pursuit of wealth, waves of Luliang residents have migrated to cities over the years, but quinoa cultivation is enabling some to stay.
Mao has already earned 50,000 yuan (US$8,000) from the 1.2 hectares of quinoa he planted in May - a sum that is nearly double what his son makes as an urban laborer.
The crop can survive in the Andes as well as the Luliang Mountains, freeing people in both areas from the geographic constraints that prevent conventional profitable farming, said Hao Lijun, the head of Suopo Township, who encouraged villagers to try cultivating the alien crop two years ago.
The quinoa in Shanxi has been planted on the 1,600-meter-high mountain slopes. The crop guarantees profits four times that of potatoes, Hao said, basing his estimates on how much it cost to buy quinoa online.
"More and more middle class Chinese in cities have begun to know this healthy food," said Wu Xiangyun, manager of Shanxi Jiaqi Agricultural Technology Co Ltd. "It has very strong market potential."
The growing wealth and changing appetites of urban Chinese have been driving changes in countryside farming techniques, presenting more opportunities for farmers.
Quinoa, a grain-like crop from the Andes known for its nutritious edible seeds, has brought prosperity to Mao and other farmers in the Luliang Mountains.
Known as "a food for the poorest of the poor," quinoa has been a staple in Latin American and South American countries for thousands of years. The so-called "Mother Grain's" nutritional value, however, was not fully appreciated until the 1980s, when it was found to be rich in protein, magnesium and iron, as well as a good source of dietary fiber, phosphorus and calcium.
The high-protein food, related to spinach and beets, gained worldwide popularity as appetites for organic and whole foods have expanded in recent years. Bolivia, for example, raked in US$64 million from quinoa exports in 2011, spurring a cultivation boom.
Mao grew up in one of the poorest regions in northern China, where generations of people have suffered from poverty largely caused by the harsh environment. He spent much of his life not even knowing about the Andes.
In the pursuit of wealth, waves of Luliang residents have migrated to cities over the years, but quinoa cultivation is enabling some to stay.
Mao has already earned 50,000 yuan (US$8,000) from the 1.2 hectares of quinoa he planted in May - a sum that is nearly double what his son makes as an urban laborer.
The crop can survive in the Andes as well as the Luliang Mountains, freeing people in both areas from the geographic constraints that prevent conventional profitable farming, said Hao Lijun, the head of Suopo Township, who encouraged villagers to try cultivating the alien crop two years ago.
The quinoa in Shanxi has been planted on the 1,600-meter-high mountain slopes. The crop guarantees profits four times that of potatoes, Hao said, basing his estimates on how much it cost to buy quinoa online.
"More and more middle class Chinese in cities have begun to know this healthy food," said Wu Xiangyun, manager of Shanxi Jiaqi Agricultural Technology Co Ltd. "It has very strong market potential."
The growing wealth and changing appetites of urban Chinese have been driving changes in countryside farming techniques, presenting more opportunities for farmers.
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