Shared farming takes urbanites back to nature

With consumers' desire to return to nature rising, growing vegetables in shared fields in the suburbs has become a new consumption trend in China.

Niu Bohan, a 31-year-old clerk in Beijing, is fond of growing plants in his spare time. Last year, he noticed that people were growing vegetables in shared fields and posting their experiences on social media.

"I started to follow their lead by renting a small field and sowing some common vegetables, such as tomatoes, eggplant, green peppers and leafy greens. A season later, I got a splendid harvest which I did not anticipate. Using the harvested vegetables, I cooked disanxian, which is sauteed potatoes with green peppers and eggplant, and stir-fried seasonal vegetables for my family and friends. They loved it. My sense of achievement was greatly boosted," Niu said.

Niu was the first customer of Mai Lang Farm, a shared farm located in Changping district of northern Beijing. In February, he rented three vegetable fields.

Song Lin, the operator of Mai Lang Farm, was born and raised in Changping district. Attracted by the idea of returning to nature, the former accountant quit her job and started the shared farm business with friends.

She took the 3,000-square-meter farm — a piece of land vacated in a wheat field contracted by Song's parents — and divided it into several units. Vegetable lovers can rent one to several units and realize vegetable self-sufficiency.

According to Song, there are three cultivation modes for consumers — self-cultivation, semi-management and full-management. Take a regular 25 sq m unit for rent as an example — self-cultivation mode, which requires growers to look after the vegetables by themselves, charges 1,000 yuan ($137) per year; semi-management mode, where growers pick and sow the seeds but have the farm operators to water the vegetables from time to time, is 2,000 yuan per year.

"The full-management mode, where we take the full charge of vegetable growing as well as packing and delivering the harvest to the owners' home, has a fee of 3,000 yuan per year. With good luck, a single unit of land yields about 300 kilograms of vegetables and fruits throughout the year," Song said.

Niu, who chose the semi-management mode, experienced the farmers' toiling in his fields.

"At first, it was tiring. Those seemingly simple procedures, including soil plowing, seedling cultivation and fertilization, were not that easy when you started. Sometimes my hands blistered. However, when the harvest season comes, the hard work pays off. The experience eases the pressure of people living and rushing in concrete cities every day. It is also a good experience to share with friends.

"As I am busy during the week, I usually go to the fields on weekends. Sometimes I go there every few weeks. However, after tasting my 'yield', my family was suddenly motivated to help me take care of the vegetables. They go to the fields and water the plants every couple of days," said Niu.

Bo Wenxi, chief economist at marketing firm Interpublic Group, said: "Shared farming is a meaningful new-type consumption, which not only satisfies people's demand toward healthy food ingredients, but also enables them to get close to nature and experience the joy of farming."

Aside from Beijing, growing vegetables in shared fields has become the latest trend in other cities such as Shanghai.

Shanghai Happy Community Shared Farm owns one base each in Minhang and Qingpu districts. Each farm covers 80 mu (5.3 hectares) of land. Many young people who commute by car pass by the farm on their way home.

"Imagine being busy in the office all day and stopping by the farm to pick some vegetables on the way home. How leisurely would it be," said Li Hui, a staff member of the farm.

Within a year of opening, the farm has attracted over 500 consumers, among whom most are busy professionals such as teachers, doctors and entrepreneurs.

"A vice-president of an educational institution organizes team building with friends and students during their leisure time, picking vegetables and fruits," said Li.

In the suburbs of Wuhan, Hubei province, Xu Zhixia obtained a local farm. In her opinion, customers come to rent land mostly to eat safe, healthy vegetables.

"Some time ago, a video blogger in the field of traditional Chinese medicine dietotherapy contacted me and took a video of the dietotherapy of lotus seeds and lotus leaf congee at my farm. Afterward, every time the blogger came to the farm, she would pick some vegetables and bring them home," Xu said.

According to a recent report by China Youth Daily, by August, there were 70 units of shared fields in Tongzhou district in Beijing and over 200 shared farms in Shanghai. Hainan province has been holding shared farm conferences for two consecutive years.

Enthusiastic as the market is, making money out of the shared farm business is no easy task.

"For consumers, growing vegetables involves hard work, as it requires accurate skills and constant care. Especially during hot weather, it is even harder," said Wang Mingya, an analyst at New Retail Business Review.

"For farm owners, operating a shared farm involves a series of trivial matters, such as renting, maintenance, operations, consumer guidance, and so on. Some large farms include picking and delivery services, which are more complex and varied," she said.

"After the trend wanes, farm owners need to think of how to turn it into a sustainable business," Wang added.

Yuan Shuai, deputy secretary-general of the Rural Revitalization Committee of China City Development Academy, said: "Shared farm operators should pay attention to high-quality services by offering premium land, seeds and fertilizers, to ensure the quality and safety of the harvest."

"They may organize community activities, such as farm visits and experience-sharing sessions, to boost consumer traffic and enhance customer loyalty," said Hong Yong, an associate research fellow in the e-commerce research department of the Ministry of Commerce.

Song from Mai Lang Farm said that they are planning activities, such as inviting families to pick vegetables and cook them outside, and parent-child corn-picking day, to make it more fun.

"We launch activities to attract consumers to rent land and grow vegetables. As long as there is continuous customer flow, and our service and vegetable quality are guaranteed, our shared farm can achieve the conversion rate of the rented land," she said.

"I don't think it's just a fad for urban people to return to nature, because the ultimate point of urbanization is in the suburbs. Everyone wants to eat good, healthy food, which growing vegetables can satisfy. It also relieves stress, making people happy physically and mentally. I am positive about the prospects of the business," she added.