Era: I was a farmer at the foot of Yaoling Mountain

"In the future, we need to control the sales of rice seeds by increasing or decreasing production. On the premise of basically ensuring market share, we can devote our energy to the research and development of new varieties."

Fang Wei convened a meeting on the autumn harvest and shared his ideas.

No one had any objections to his idea, but the cooperative doesn't lack land now. If they voluntarily reduce production, how should they use the extra land?

"Secretary, if we actively control the rice yield, will it significantly reduce the cooperative's profits?"

“Reducing some of the revenue is acceptable. The land will not be left uncultivated. We can grow rice and increase the supply of Yaoling rice.”

Every year, large quantities of rice seeds are put on the market, and there are already signs of a backlog.

In this situation, adjustments should be made according to local conditions, rather than focusing solely on profitability. Rice cultivation is the safest option, as no matter the yield, there will be no stockpiling.

In addition, we can cultivate new hybrid rice varieties on the one hand, and actively expand the number of varieties to be bred on the other hand.

The cultivation of new vegetable varieties is still ongoing, with 23 varieties of mutated vegetables already developed, and more to be added in the future. With this foundation, the cooperative's profitability is not bad.

Everyone then reached a consensus that the authorized party would be responsible for formulating the production plan for the following year.

Fang Wei did not rush to take action but instead began to inspect the entire cooperative. He also visited other townships to meet with the farmers who had signed contracts and listened carefully to their opinions.

“Secretary Fang, the price of rice in other places has already risen to 0.16 yuan per jin. Shouldn’t our purchase price also be raised a bit?”

"That's easy to say. We'll see how things go next year. Adjusting prices according to market conditions won't make anyone suffer."

The cooperative's purchase price for rice is slightly higher than the market price. The purchase has already begun after this year's autumn harvest, and the purchase price has increased slightly.

The cooperative has conducted its own assessment, so he simply listened to the calls for price increases from a few individuals and let it go. The cooperative has a strict calculation formula for purchasing, ensuring that neither the farmers nor the cooperative itself suffers a loss.

Fang Wei collected enough first-hand information, and then stayed in the office to start formulating the production plan for the following year.

First, the planting area of ​​[Nongyou 82] should be reduced, while the planting area of ​​[Nanguang No. 4] can be appropriately expanded. The extra land can be used to plant a single season of rice.

The profits from growing rice and cultivating rice varieties differ greatly, but it is acceptable as a transition.

Yangshan Farm mainly focuses on cultivating high-yield corn seeds and high-yield cash crop seeds. Xinlin Farm can consider establishing a 10,000-mu vegetable breeding base, while the remaining 30,000 mu of farmland can be used to grow rice.

Fang Wei completed the production plan for the coming year in just one day. However, he did not rush to submit it to the council, but would consider it further and submit it before the end of the year.

Currently, the domestic demand for rice seeds is generally saturated, with most of the rice seeds on the market being hybrid rice seeds, and a small portion being conventional rice seeds.

The price of rice varieties varies significantly. The two varieties produced by the cooperative are high-end varieties, while there are many mid- to low-end varieties available on the market.

Grain production has been increasing year by year in recent years, and the country has basically solved its food problem. There is still a small shortage in the supply of rice and wheat, but if corn is included, the supply will definitely exceed demand.

Corn can be used as animal feed, so the livestock industry has been booming in the past two years. The increase in meat supply, in turn, will reduce the consumption of staple food, which is a good thing.

This morning.

Fang Wei was looking at documents in his office when Zhao Jinsheng walked in from outside.

"Secretary, the rapeseed planting in the commune is finished, so we can take a break now."

The cooperative's autumn harvest started earlier than in other places, putting them ahead of the off-season for farming.

The cooperative's 8 mu of paddy fields, plus the breeding center's 4 mu of paddy fields, totaling 12 mu of farmland, have all been planted with rapeseed.

If we don't let the land rest this winter, we can harvest some crops by the beginning of next year.

"What's the situation at Xinlin Farm and Yangshan Farm?"

Fang Wei nodded and asked casually.

"The third season's cash crops on both farms can be harvested by mid-next month at the latest. Everything is normal so far, and nothing unusual has happened."

A few days ago, Zhao Jinsheng went to Yangshan County to purchase rice for which he had signed a contract, and also visited Yangshan Farm.

Both farms operated smoothly, generating substantial profits for the cooperative over the course of the year. Many of the farm workers were contract workers, paid according to the cooperative's wage system, receiving both wages and bonuses, but most did not receive dividends.

Those who receive dividends are basically the backbone of the farm.

"I'll go see him again in a while. Old Zhao, you've been working hard lately, take a few days to rest."

Fang Wei gave Zhao Jinsheng a few days off so that he could get some rest.

Zhao Jinsheng left happily, and not long after, Zhao Yong brought Li Wenhe's successor to the cooperative.

"Secretary Fang, let's put an end to the past grievances between our township and your cooperative. We hope you will continue to support us in the future, and I will actively cooperate with your work to ensure that the situation will not repeat itself."

Secretary Shi, who succeeded Li Wenhe, was very familiar with rural work and spoke very directly.

Zhao Yong chimed in, saying that the bottom line was to get the cooperative to lift the ban on their township.

This wasn't a big deal, so Fang Wei readily agreed: "For Secretary Zhao's sake, I agree with you. We're all locals, so we should help each other out in the future."

Now that Zhao Yong had gained face, he insisted on taking Fang Wei to the countryside for lunch.

Knowing that they were going to drink, Fang Wei brought a driver, and the group went to Yaoling Township. There are quite a few restaurants in the township now, and Zhao Yong ordered a few dishes and opened two bottles of baijiu (Chinese liquor).

In the end, Secretary Shi couldn't hold back and drank too much, almost crawling under the table.

Zhao Yong had a good alcohol tolerance, and he also knew that Fang Wei's tolerance was even more formidable. However, he hadn't told Secretary Shi this, which was a way of giving him a warning.

After eating and drinking to her heart's content, Fang Wei returned home to rest.

After taking a nap at home, he felt refreshed and went straight to the experimental field.

The makeshift greenhouses at the experimental field have long been dismantled, and modern steel-structured greenhouses have been built in their place. This has greatly facilitated the experimental work, allowing various experiments to be conducted throughout the year, resulting in a qualitative leap in experimental conditions.

“Secretary Fang, seven more varieties of the vegetable seeds we have cultivated have mutated. In addition, our latest research on hybrid rice varieties has also made some progress.”

The researchers were all members of the original second breeding team. Under Fang Wei's guidance, they established several research groups and are conducting experiments on vegetable breeding, hybrid rice breeding, and wheat breeding.

The ideas and framework were provided by Fang Wei; they only needed to carry out the specific work step by step. "Excellent, your work is very effective and deserves praise. Let's go see the new hybrid rice."

There are no major problems in cultivating vegetable varieties; given enough time, all the new varieties can be obtained.

It seems that there are still some difficulties in the breeding of new hybrid rice varieties. Fang Wei then went to check the experimental records and also examined the selected rice seeds.

The current problem is that genetic characteristics are not very stable, which requires a re-examination of the selection of sterile lines, maintainer lines, and restorer lines.

Fang Wei has always used the "three-line breeding method," a technique that is familiar to everyone. Based on his assessment, the selection of sterile plants is not a problem; the focus now needs to be on selecting maintainer and restorer lines.

The research institute has begun to get involved in biotechnology, but it is not yet mature, so the screening of three lines will be very troublesome.

"Let's change the line and use the B-06 plant instead. In my experience, this plant should be a better choice. Once we've decided on this plant, the remaining issue is selecting the restorer line. You'll have to use a broad selection process."

Fang Wei was able to pick out plant B-06 at a glance, not because he was lucky, but because the previous experimental data was sufficient for him to make a judgment.

The final selection process involves a laborious method: conducting a massive number of pairing experiments to find the desired plants. This process involves a considerable element of luck, but it can be gradually refined over time.

The new hybrid rice variety belongs to the indica hybrid rice category. The target yield must at least exceed that of "Nanguang No. 4", and the taste and flavor must not be inferior to "Nanguang No. 4".

Fortunately, he wasn't in a hurry and had enough time to conduct the experiments.

The experimental field grows much faster than the main field. Including the winter season, there are six full-cycle experiments a year, and one experiment can be completed on average every two months.

People have become accustomed to this super breeding experiment method and are no longer surprised. When asked, they simply say it's all thanks to the greenhouses.

Fang Wei finalized the plan for the next stage of the experiment and then left the experimental field. Now, he no longer needed to do many things personally; he provided the ideas and methods, and the specific tasks were naturally handled by others.

After that, he was too lazy to go to the office, so he went directly to the bamboo ware factory to pick up a lotus flower, and the couple went to the county to visit their two children.

Communication with their child naturally takes place at the dinner table. Every time they come here, they take their child out for a nice meal.

"Binbin, have you decided which school you want to apply to?"

Binbin will be facing the college entrance examination at the beginning of the year. Fang Wei knows that her son likes traditional Chinese medicine, but she still wants to talk about this issue.

"Dad, I want to apply to a university of traditional Chinese medicine and become a TCM doctor after graduation."

As expected, Binbin's answer left Fang Wei feeling a little disappointed.

In the future, traditional Chinese medicine will not be popular in China. Many TCM hospitals are just pretending to be hospitals, and TCM doctors will face a difficult career path.

Have you ever thought about studying Western medicine? That way, you can combine traditional Chinese and Western medicine and forge a broader path.

Fang Wei wouldn't force her son, but she would offer some advice. Ultimately, the choice was his own, as he would have to walk his own path in life.

Binbin shook his head. This child was very opinionated, and Fang Wei didn't say anything more when he saw this.

After dinner, the couple took their child back to school and then returned home.

"Third Brother, aren't you worried that Binbin has chosen the wrong path?"

Pan Lianhua was not unaware of these things. She hadn't said anything in front of the children, but after returning home, she started to worry again.

"It's okay. As long as the child is motivated, it doesn't matter what major he studies or what career he pursues. Even if he chooses the wrong path, there's still a lot of room for error."

Fang Wei smiled and told his wife to relax.

Pan Lianhua was quite puzzled as to why the man didn't care about the cost of the child's trial and error. But she quickly realized that with him as a safety net for the child, even if the child didn't have a successful career after studying traditional Chinese medicine, it wouldn't be a big deal.

A few days passed quickly.

The harvesting work at Xinlin Farm and Yangshan Farm has been completed, and they will now plant rapeseed.

This year, the cooperative's rapeseed planting area reached 22 mu, which is the first time in the cooperative's history.

“Secretary, should we build our own oil pressing plant? The county basically uses traditional methods to press oil, which results in low oil yield and a lot of waste. If we build such a plant, it will definitely be very popular.”

That morning, a director came to Fang Wei and proposed building an oil pressing plant.

The investment in an oil pressing plant can vary greatly, but if advanced oil pressing technology is used, the machinery and equipment can be quite expensive.

"Your suggestion is good. Let's hold a council meeting and discuss it."

Fang Wei felt that processing agricultural and sideline products would be no problem, given the cooperative's support and numerous advantages. So, he convened a council meeting that afternoon, and the proposal was quickly approved.

The cooperative is very familiar with the deep processing of these agricultural and sideline products; some people are responsible for handling the procedures, and others are responsible for ordering equipment.

The oil pressing plant was located in the industrial park, right next to the chestnut processing plant, and the factory buildings were already in place.

The council member who made the suggestion will be in charge of the entire construction work, and it can be put into operation before the rapeseed harvest next year.

Zhao Jinsheng is busy again. There are many people in various towns and villages who grow rapeseed, and the cooperative has expressed its willingness to purchase the rapeseed produced this season.

Of course, the most important prerequisite for signing the agreement is that the farmers have planted the cooperative's rapeseed varieties. If the seeds are not produced by the cooperative, then the cooperative cannot purchase them.

The rapeseed produced by the cooperative is of good quality and has a high oil yield, with a yield of over 230 jin of rapeseed per mu.

Before we knew it, the company was producing more and more products, such as chili sauce series, chestnut product series, Yaoling rice, and now rapeseed oil will be added to the list.

Of course, this equipment can press rapeseed oil, so it can also press tea oil. If you don't consider the large investment required, it's quite convenient.

After learning the news, Cui Yiming made a special trip to the industrial park and praised the cooperative on many occasions for its vision in pioneering a new path for the deep processing of agricultural and sideline products.

In Fang Wei's opinion, there was nothing to be proud of.

The processing plants he set up don't actually involve much technology. There might be some investment barriers, since these plants have introduced advanced production equipment and have very strict production standards.

Starting with high standards is fundamentally different from ordinary small factories.

The key is still the raw materials. As long as the raw materials are good, the processed products will sell well. (End of Chapter)