Xu Hongjian was born in Chaqi Village, Futian Township, Wuning County, Jiangxi Province. He is a member of the Communist Party of China, and currently works as chief and legal representative of the Pingyao Zhenghong Eco-farm in Wuning County.
In September 2007, he enrolled in the junior-college Business Administration programme at Jiangxi Radio and Television University (Jiangxi RTVU), from which he graduated in January 2010. He has been named a “National Wealth-creation Leader through Science and Technology in Rural Areas”, a “Jiangxi Labour Model”, a “National Labour Model”, and so on.
Xu Hongjian began working in agricultural production in his hometown after graduating from high school in 1995. In 1996, the village began to implement a contractual-responsibility system, in which farmlands and mountainous areas of the village were allocated to farmers to manage independently. One remote hill facing a lake, choked by grass and thorns, was of interest to no one else, but Xu Hongjian and his father contracted and began to cultivate it, taking five years to finish cultivating the 360 mu (24 ha).
His family started a business on this land, farming pigs and planting vegetables, watermelons, and fruit trees. He suffered many setbacks. Once, more than 100 pigs contracted swine fever, and he lost almost everything, while another time a good watermelon harvest was lost due to transportation failure. He often would walk dozens of miles, carrying in baskets the peaches, pears and other fruit he had grown to sell on street corners. Nonetheless, his determination never wavered, and he finally decided to concentrate on producing fruit. By 2003, the family's orchard had become sizable, and he was well-known in the area as a rural entrepreneur.
For his efforts he has been praised by the township, county and municipal governments, and given the honours mentioned earlier. In 2004, when Comrade Meng Jianzhu, then secretary of the Jiangxi Provincial Party Committee, came to Wuning to inspect the work there, he made a point of visiting Xu Hongjian's farm, and gave his entrepreneurial spirit and the development of his farm high praise, while expressing strong expectations for its future. These words greatly inspired Xu Hongjian, and strengthened his confidence.
In April 2003, Xu Hongjian began planting red bayberries, persimmons, plums, oranges, peaches, pears and other fruit in his family orchard. In 2005, he led eight other fruit growers to establish the Pingyao Fruit Professional Cooperative. After graduating with a degree in Business Administration from Jiangxi RTVU in 2010, he applied what he had learned to the management of the farms and cooperatives, adopting a business model called "farm + cooperative + farmers". His main focus was on his own orchards and hotels, and he invited farmers to participate in cooperative management, adhering to the principle that those who invest, manage and operate will get the benefits, so as to achieve the goals of complementary advantages, coordinated development, win-win cooperation and mutual benefit. So far, 136 households have joined the cooperative, motivating over 480 households from the surrounding areas to take up fruit production. In 2017, the output of the cooperative reached 3 million yuan, providing a total annual income of 1 million yuan and an average income for farmers of 50,000 yuan.
In 2012, the Pingyao Eco-farm was selected as a teaching centre for the "One College Student Per Village" programme in Wuning County. Xu Hongjian was hired as a tutor, and organised many practical teaching activities. He shared his experiences of entrepreneurship and managing his orchard and farm, winning unanimous praise from his students. In March 2014, his farm was named one of the first demonstration teaching centres in the "One College Student Per Village” programme by the Department of Agriculture and Industry of the provincial Party Committee and Jiangxi RTVU.
Xu Hongjian's development principle is to pay equal attention to exploitation, use and protection. He keeps pace with the times, constantly updating his knowledge, and actively develops new markets so as to realise a harmonious growth of "social, ecological and economic benefits".
By OUC Voice WeChat Official Account