New mode

In China, villagers own the right to use cropland, based on the requirements of the household contract responsibility system, a policy introduced in the early 1980s.

In 2021, about 267 hectares of cropland in Dalu were transferred to the State-owned Anhui Provincial State Farms Group for a new mode of business, while the remaining land was transferred to a number of villagers.

The group provides funding and technology, while the village, as a collective farming cooperative, is responsible for management. The villagers perform paid daily farm work.

Dalu villagers are paid an annual rent of 7,500 yuan per hectare by the group. In addition, 50 percent of the annual net profit goes to the group. Part of the remainder is distributed to the villagers as a dividend, while the rest is retained by the cooperative for purposes such as improving infrastructure in the village.

In 2019, in Hongqiao village, Yijing township, Changfeng, 380 hectares of high-standard cropland were entrusted to Kingfarm, a major company and modern agricultural service platform.

Kingfarm provides a one-stop service for the village, charging 6,900 yuan per hectare each year, with the aim of providing Hongqiao with an annual turnover of 10,500 yuan per hectare, the Changfeng agriculture and rural affairs bureau said.

The service provided by Kingfarm includes plowing, planting, disease prevention and pest control, harvesting and sale of produce.

Dong said: "As many villagers have moved to cities for work, they no longer have to worry about leaving their land idle. In addition to their salaries, they can also gain more income from these new business methods."

Last year, the cooperative in Dalu had an annual income of more than 10 million yuan — a sharp contrast to the 100,000 yuan it made in 2019.

Despite severe drought last year, Anhui reported grain output of 41 million metric tons, the fourth-highest among the 31 provincial-level regions on the Chinese mainland.

Provincial authorities said the provision of high-standard cropland was one of the major reasons for the good harvest.