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Tasting organic fruits, vegetables and meat or getting familiar with the history of sand polished jade by hand, visitors come to Shoufeng Township to enjoy the beauty and goodness from the intertwinement of agriculture and ecology.
Shoufeng in Huanlien proactively promotes toxic free farming and it develops vegetable cultivation, aquatic products and husbandry. In recent years, agriculture in Shoufeng turns to experimental leisure, integrating local organic industries, ecological environment and the culture of a farming village. It welcomes visitors to learn from doing and further understand local cultures and history so that visitors not only have fun but also feel touched.
Teaching Children to Build Food Literacy
Jiafeng LEE has been in organic agriculture for almost 20 years, and he is a pioneer in developing organic agriculture in Shoufeng. He recalled the un-comfortableness that prompted him to take on organic practices. In the first 3 years when Jiafeng LEE ran “Jiafeng Organic Farm”, he didn’t make money at all due to lack of information, distribution channels and subsidies, but he firmly believed that when people start paying attention to health, his efforts would pay off. Later on, with the instruction of Hualien County Government which promoted toxic free farming, he found a way that sustains his finance and business. And now his organic vegetables can be found in the school lunch for pupils in Hualien. After his son joined him, they had further cooperation with schools and organized food education activities to connect the future generation with agriculture, food and Taiwan, our mother land.
Fun of Sanding Jades
The grinder ran fast, and Mr. Jinyuan JIANG was guiding visitors how to sand the matt white stone, grind the corners and edges and polish it with the horse skin in order to make it smooth, even, and shiny. During Japanese Occupation period, Japanese found asbestos in mountain areas of Fengtian and started mass mining for military supplies. The jade coexisted with asbestos was later confirmed as Taiwanese jade by scholars. This fact turns this farming village into a production center of Taiwanese jade, but it only lasted dozens of years because lower priced jade was imported, and this jade mine was abandoned. But the new opportunity brought more possibilities.
JIANG had the mining right in Fengtian in the olden days, and there is still plenty of jade and minerals in the mine. As the mining industry declined, he changed the business model from wholesaling to tourist service of DIY jade so that visitors can make a jade of their own. This way not only re boosts the brand awareness of Taiwanese jade, but also give a new look to the traditional industry.
Water Lilies and Croaking Frogs Giving a Sense of Relaxation
In the early morning, a pond of waterlilies that bud started to bloom in the sunshine, with the tree frogs by the pond croaking loudly. This pleasant bucolic view of waterlilies was created studiously by the owner of “Little Tree Toad Organic Ecofarm”, Mr. Weiliang CHEN. Weiliang CHEN started the animal husbandry business with his father. The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease prompted him to consider the possibility of transformation. After some survey and deliberation, he found a chance in leisure agriculture. After a near to death illness, he established the health village with the objective of being “healthy and organic” and designed the ecological education area, revived many kinds of frogs, and served organic cuisines. The waterlily tea is the most popular product. When the night falls, the tree toads croak loudly here and there. Organic agriculture not only brings biodiversity back to the environment on the farm but also deploys places for treasure hunt that visitors can explore at night.
Eating Freshly Picked Vegetables is Delightful
In the mid-summer, cucumbers and bell peppers grown in the net house of “Jiangyubao Organic Farm” are ripe for harvest. Yubao JIANG was from a family with farming business, and he mockingly said agriculture is the last thing he wanted to do. Originally he planned to stay and work in the city, but his father was ill and didn’t want to sell the land that he loved deeply; therefore, he returned to his home town and took over the business. At first, he chose to grow leaves that racked in the cash but his wife persuaded him to give up conventional farming; hence, he entered the organic world and started the journey through continuous study and learning, finally, he made the sturdy and weather proof net house with light steel frames. His organic lily grown in the net house was cooked and served in the state banquet. Taking care of the farm, working with schools, delivering agricultural practices, and accompanying young farmers to have filed trips, he is fully occupied. So he wrote the prices of his fruits and vegetables on the blackboard and opened the farm to visitors for fruit picking, weighing produce and putting money into envelops before submitting it through the door gap. He runs his farm like an honesty shop. He believes in humanity and honesty and gives visitors equal respect and a chance to feel at home and fully experience the fun on the farm.
In Search for Tastiness in a Countryside Garden
We followed the steep slope to move up and saw a flock of chicken raised by “Xiangting Toxic Free Farm”strolling around, indeed free-ranch chickens. The owner of Xiangting Toxic Free Farm, Jinyi ZHANG used to be an office worker. Considering business entertainment may be harmful to health, he started raising chicken with family members’ assistance. He was a dummy in this business and ran into a predicament that chickens’ death rate rose to 70% in the beginning. He kept studying and learning the raising skills and technology, honing professional capabilities and gradually getting the knack for raising chickens. Zhang took the advantage of the undulating terrain, segmented the space by nets and built an open chicken coop so that the broiler chicken and egg chicken peck their way around in the open space. The free ranch period lasts 5 and half a months, the chickens are not injected any antibiotics so that the chicken taste slightly sweet and scrumptious, and the eggs smell good; therefore, popular goods among consumers.
