Large potted-flower production base in the Wenjiang district. Photo provided to China Daily

The Wenjiang district, which lies to the west of downtown Chengdu, Sichuan province's capital, is seen by locals as a model of how to build a new socialist countryside.

"The local government places a lot of importance on modern agricultur to benefit farmers," one government official said.

Over past three years, the value of agricultural produce has increased by more than 4 percent, and the average net income of farmers has gone up 15 percent.

Modern agriculture

Specialized cooperatives are what the local government wants to use to help industrial development.

In 2009, they set up a vegetable cooperative in the town of Yongning town.

"The cooperative includes 32 farm households with nearly 27 hectares of land," said Yin Huaijun, head of the cooperative.

"We plant garlic, organic rice and organic vegetables and this has brought remarkable profits."

Their garlic has a geographical status and most of it does not go to the market but is bought by farmers to plant because it has much higher price than normal garlic. And the price of their organic rice and vegetables is also several times higher than for normal crops, according to Yin.

"Annual incomes can reach 2.4 million yuan ($369,000) now," he noted.

Wenjiang now has 61 agricultural products processers, which an annual output value that can exceed 5.6 billion yuan. It also has 11 famous provincial brands.

Flowers are another sector supporting Wenjiang's agriculture.

Nearly 95 percent of the village of Xingfu is covered with trees and flowers. "

We've set up six specialized flower cooperatives," said village Party Secretary Guo Jianping.

"Farmers not only get scientific planting suggestions from the cooperative, but also benefit from smoother trade channels."

Rural construction

In addition to agricultural development, the authorities are working on improving infrastructure in rural areas.

"Our goal is to build an idyllic rural area with a charming landscape," the local officials have said.

In Xingfu, rows of modern houses are under construction, surrounded by gingko trees, sweet osmanthus and reworked landscapes.

"We want our people to experience a harmonious combination of prosperity and serenity, modernity and heritage," the officials added.

"The village shows its initial beauty and we'll build it into another famous tourist spot."

According to the local rural development bureau, Wenjiang has 53 new communities on a more than 6.2-million square meter area, accommodating nearly 30,000 households.

(China Daily 06/01/2011 page47)