Hechi launches $2m feed crop cultivation project

The launching ceremony of the 10,000 mu (666.67 hectares) trial project of replacing grain crop cultivation with feed crop cultivation in Dahua Yao autonomous county was held in Deli village, Liuye township on May 9.

In recent years, Dahua has actively explored new poverty alleviation models of collective building, farming, and planting in accordance with the local conditions, strengthening financial support, demonstration promotion, and beneficial policies. At present, the county has built 409 poverty alleviation farms, of which two to three are in each village.

In order to promote the healthy development of the aquaculture industry, improve the comprehensive processing capacity of grain-to-feed, as well as promote the specialization, scale, and localization of the production of forage materials, Dahua is making full use of idle land to grow pasture, combining it with the actual needs of forage feed in the county's poverty-stricken farms to build the project to increase farmers' incomes.

The implementation of the project will ensure the supply of forage feed for the county's poverty alleviation farms and promote the development of animal husbandry, laying a solid foundation for the county to build an integrated demonstration base for poverty alleviation industries.

The total investment of the project is 15 million yuan ($2.12 million) and the total area of the first phase is 3,000 mu. Pasture will be planted and supporting facilities like feed processing plants will be built. After completion, it will produce 40,000 tons of forage annually, with an output value of 8 million yuan. It is expected to create 50 local jobs opportunities and indirectly drive the employment of more than 2,000 people.

The pilot project to replace grain crop cultivation with feed crop cultivation is an agricultural reform carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture, which promotes forage in areas suitable for growing high-quality forage, transforming simple grain silos into comprehensive warehouses of granary, milk, and meat.