Pioneering group swapping spreadsheets for soil

Trading places

For a large part of his life, 34-year-old Wang Xin lived in suburban Tongzhou district. His university studies, involving landscaping and plants, eventually led to a job, so he moved to the city, just like many young people. However, the stresses of city life overwhelmed him, so he packed up and left for the countryside.

"In the city, I had to travel on the subway for two hours every morning. At night, I spent another two hours on the subway," he said. "Then I had to work overtime and stare at a computer every day. I couldn't continue like that anymore, so I needed to change my life."

As Wang liked plants, he decided to farm so he could get closer to them. Now, the former landscape designer is settled at a farm in Daxing district and is well-known at the Beijing Farmers' Market for the quality of his strawberries.

Unlike Zhang and Wang, Ding Jiazi has spent a large part of her life in cities. The 33-year-old also spent nine years studying and working in the United States before returning to China. However, after working for two years in Beijing, she called it quits last year and left to attend a farming school. Now, she works with a group of young farmers at an orchard.

"From the beginning, I paid close attention to organic produce," said Ding, when asked how she got into farming. "I liked to browse shops that sold organic goods. At the time, I was working in the US and I liked to go to places like Wholefoods (a well-known superstore). I felt that the items at those places were really delicious. I felt closer to the land, and I could understand something more about nature by buying such organic products."

It was not a difficult decision to leave her job and become a farmer, despite no previous experience of rural life. "Once I had carefully thought through my decision, I just stepped into it with little hesitation," she said.