Taiwan businesswoman in Yunnan strikes it rich with wasabi business
Print Edition
Lo Niyun from Taiwan has run a wasabi company in Yunnan Province for 17 years.
Lo, 56, is from Penghu County in Taiwan. Her wasabi-processing company mainly sells its products to Japan, the United States, and Thailand, but she is hoping the spicy horseradish relative will take off among consumers on the mainland.
Wasabi is most often made into a green mustard-like condiment with a strong, hot taste that is served with sushi or seafood. Lo said wasabi kills parasites in the digestive system and has strong medicinal value.
Lo earned a bachelor鈥檚 degree in food processing and, after graduation, started working at a company that sold specialties from Taiwan鈥檚 Ali Mountain.
鈥淛apanese restaurants had growing demand for wasabi grown in Ali. The profits were impressive,鈥 Lo said.
However, fierce competition forced Lo to find new wasabi cultivation areas outside Taiwan.
Lo came to Kunming, capital of Yunnan, in 1999.
鈥淚 was totally attracted to the pleasant climate and beautiful scenery when I got off the plane,鈥 she said. 鈥淥n top of that, the local government鈥檚 support for farmers in rural areas to develop the wasabi industry had reassured me to stay.鈥
In 2001, Lo set up her company in Yiliang County, about 70 kilometers from Kunming. To ensure a smooth supply of the vegetables, Lo cooperates with farmers in the mountainous counties of Eryuan, Luquan, Huize, Yiliang and Baoshan.
鈥淭he clean air, water and soil in these cold highland areas are suitable for growing wasabi. Wasabi also brings higher incomes for farmers compared with other crops,鈥 Lo said.
Yu Canhui, a farmer in Eryuan county, has grown wasabi in Gaoluoxi Village for about 20 years. Last year, he earned over 100,000 yuan (about US$15,800) in his 0.67-hectare hilly fields 2,600 meters above sea level.
鈥淏efore I turned to wasabi, I grew potatoes, but wasabi brings more money. We can get from 90,000 to 150,000 yuan per hectare by growing wasabi,鈥 Yu said. 鈥淪ince 2001, wasabi planters in my village have cooperated with Lo鈥檚 company, which provides us a guaranteed price and a stable market.鈥
Now Yu manages Lo鈥檚 planting bases in Eryuan. Recently, he has been busy with other farmers harvesting wasabi leaves and stems.
Lo鈥檚 company has nearly 134 hectares of planting bases and cooperates with about 600 farmer households in Yunnan, according to company manager Cao Yan. She thinks that wasabi has helped farmers living in rural mountains find a path to battle poverty.
鈥淔armers are not the only beneficiaries. The company also created 120 jobs for locals,鈥 said Cao, a resident of Yiliang.
For over a decade, Lo focused on developing overseas markets by exporting fresh leaves, stems and roots of wasabi and wasabi sauce. Last year, the export volume was over 2,000 tons, which accounted for 90 percent of the total output. But although the products are popular abroad, the export market is limited.
鈥淪o we increased investment in downstream processing and developed products catering to consumers on the mainland,鈥 said Lo. 鈥淲e blended wasabi with local specialties such as bean sauce, sesame biscuits and chili sauce.鈥
With the new products, Lo said she aims to expand the mainland market share to 50 percent or even higher.
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