Huanjiang establishes first Chinese herbal medicine planting specialized cooperative

Huanjiang Maonan autonomous county in Hechi, Guangxi, recently established its first specialized cooperative for planting Chinese herbal medicine, a step in the right direction for the area's anti-poverty project.

The cooperative, namely, Guangxi Huanjiang Nalong Rice Paper Plant Pith Planting Specialized Cooperative, is located at Wuyu village in Chuanshan town. The village has 510 impoverished households with 1,785 people in total. According to Huanjiang's anti-poverty program, the village plans to get rid of poverty by 2018.

In order to reach the goal, since this year, cadres and workers from Guangxi and Huanjiang government departments have decided to energetically develop rice paper plant pith planting in the area after looking into locals' willingness, consulting with experts and testing the soil, climate and species' adaptability.

Rice paper plant pith

The rice paper plant pith adapts well to changeable conditions, has a short harvest time that provides long periods of benefit, a high economic value and good market prospect. The seedling investment of each mu is about 1,200 yuan ($184) and the rice paper plant pith can be harvested within one year with an average output of 50 kilograms each mu (dried products). Its market prices vary from 160 to 200 yuan per kilogram, so the net income for one mu can be up to 7,000 yuan.

Up to now, Wuxu village has planted 232 mu (15.47 hectares), benefiting 106 impoverished households. It has provided 340,000 yuan in subsidies to plant 92,000 seedlings, establish a cooperative and sign contacts in technical services and acquisition.

This year, an allowance of 1,500 yuan per mu will be given to the households that take part, and those with no funds will be supported via a small loan. Huanjiang plans to make the herbal medicine planting industry a focal point of its anti-poverty project within three years.

Edited by Owen Fishwick