Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2012-12-15
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| Qi Jing, left, and Xiao Nan. (Photo courtesy of Qi Jing and Xiao Nan) |
Qi Jing and
Xiao Nan shuffle out of their Beijing desk jobs on Friday and head off to the
countryside for the weekend, a normal routine for the farm owners who
unintentionally dug up a business from their earthen interests, the party-run
China Youth Daily reports.
Skepticism
over the quality of the food on their plates brought the two women to
reconsider their eating habits in a radical way. China has seen little
improvement in its food safety standards. Almost every week the public finds
out that there is mercury in their baby food, plasticizers in their drinks or
that the oil they use to cook came from the gutter. Some foods, like eggs and
even peas, end up being entirely, inedibly fake.
Qi and
Xiao's iFengshou farm, started on a piece of rented land in the suburbs, is
their solution. It opened to the public in April after more than 200,000 yuan
(US$32,000) in investment.
The savvy
duo make their money from the excess produce they began to sell to followers of
their blog. "We didn't do it for profit in the beginning, but waste should
not be tolerated," Xiao said.
One of
their friends once called the duo's idea "out there and ridiculous"
but later designed a postcard for the farm because of its growing popularity,
the newspaper said.
Alternative
"farming" is far from outlandish and is becoming mainstream far
beyond the reaches of the modest Beijing venture. In Hong Kong, residents who
have caught the chemical scent of China's produce have begun to stuff tiny
plots into every space conceivable. Corn and cabbage sprouts on rooftops, on
balconies and in communal plots all over the tightly packed city, according to
the New York Times.
Organic,
community-supported agriculture is cropping up all over the mainland. Even big
business — from state-owned power companies to telecommunications — is cashing
in on the rebellion. Company-owned plots of land are a way to unite employees
through community work and guarantee healthy produce in office canteens, says
US-based Health Impact News Daily.
The
iFengshou farm women rent miniature plots on the land to people who also feel
cornered by China's food industry, and are overrun with constant updates to
their blog and customer orders. "Sometimes I feel as if I've been
kidnapped by the farm," said Xiao. "But the farm has
overhauled our lives."
Seventeen
of the 20 lots on the farm have been rented out, and they deliver fresh produce
to additional 20 families in the city.
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