Cattle breeding boosts farmers' income

Gong Chengjin, a 55-year-old cattle breeder at the Daditou Specialized Farmers' Cooperative in Dashan town in Panzhou, Guizhou province, was pleased to find that his income would almost double this year after the cooperative started raising 121 cattle in March.

Gong used to make a living planting corn. Farming brought him a humble income of about 20,000 yuan ($3,000) a year. In search of a higher income, he went to the city to work as a tree planter, but returned to his village later, as he found it difficult to keep up with the latest horticulture skills and knowledge.

Now, he can make 36,000 yuan a year by working for the cooperative as a cattle breeder. He also receives an annual payment of 6,000 yuan per hectare for 20 years for transferring the right to use and manage his farmland to the cooperative.