Agricultural pioneer leads rural vitalization efforts

As a "new farmer" born in the 1980s, Han Fengxiang, head of Fenghuangshan Agricultural Machinery and Farmers Specialized Cooperative in Lishu county in Northeast China's Jilin province, has spearheaded efforts to promote rural vitalization.

By introducing agricultural equipment, Han's cooperative has achieved fully-mechanized and large-scale planting. By actively extending the agricultural industrial chain, the cooperative has created a "planting, breeding, processing and marketing" model.

From its humble beginning with five members, the cooperative has now grown to be a 158-member establishment, managing 15,000 mu (1,000 hectares) of farmland and covering production in nine villages across two townships. With 73 units of large agricultural machines, the cooperative achieved a total grain output of over 10 million kilograms in 2023.

Located in the heart of the Songliao Plain's golden corn belt, Lishu county is one of China's major grain-producing counties. Making the protection of black soil as a top priority, the cooperative has made continuous efforts to explore innovative cropping model and achieved a yield 30 percent higher than that of traditional farming.