In late autumn, the cold is getting stronger on the southern edge of the Horqin Sandy Land. Aohan Banner, which was once plagued by wind and sand, has turned sea buckthorn, millet, and forage grass growing on the yellow sandy land into "green assets" that enrich the people and industry after decades of sand control and afforestation. From sand control and soil consolidation to industrial chain extension, this land is writing a win-win story of ecological protection and industrial income increase. Recently, reporters from China News Network visited Aohan Banner.
In the Seabuckthorn Industrial Park in Changshengdianzi Village, Changsheng Town, Aohan Banner, seabuckthorn fruits have been harvested and are being sent to cold storage for freezing and preservation. Recently, Aohan Banner held a sea buckthorn and almond product ordering meeting. Nearly a thousand merchants gathered at the scene, and the transaction volume exceeded 100 million yuan. A sea buckthorn fruit is not only an ecological barrier to lock the quicksand, but also an important starting point for extending the local industrial chain and revitalizing green resources.
Aohan Banner, located on the southern edge of the Horqin Sandy Land, is a typical example of northern regions achieving green transformation by relying on ecological management. Since 1958, the local area has accumulated more than 5 million acres of artificial afforestation, and the proportion of desertification has increased from 76% to the current forest vegetation coverage rate of 40.6%. It has been awarded the title of "National Ecological Civilization Construction Demonstration Zone", "National Advanced Flag for Rebuilding Beautiful Mountains and Rivers", and "China Natural Oxygen Bar".
“The ecological environment continues to improve, which also lays a good foundation for the development of characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry.” Zhou Guolong, deputy director of the Aohan Banner Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau, said in an interview with reporters that focusing on characteristic resources such as millet, sea buckthorn, and beef cattle, Aohan Banner promotes the extension of industry from planting and breeding to intensive processing, market sales, etc., and promotes the in-depth integration of ecological resources and industrial development.
Relying on local seabuckthorn and apricot resources, Inner Mongolia Desert Flower Ecological Industry Technology Co., Ltd. has been deeply involved in the intensive processing of seabuckthorn for more than 20 years, and has gradually formed an industrial chain from breeding of fine seeds, base planting to scientific research and innovation, intensive processing, and marketing. The company produces sea buckthorn puree, sea buckthorn drinks, sea buckthorn oil, sea buckthorn health tea and other products, with average annual sales exceeding 140 million yuan in the past two years.
For the local people, the value of seabuckthorn lies not only in sand fixation and soil protection, but also in its ability to form stable acquisition channels, jobs and income sources. The company has extended the processing link to the planting and harvesting end, making ecological resources more closely linked to farmers' income.
"We adopt the 'enterprise + base + farmer' interest linkage model, and through premium purchases, fixed-point harvesting, and priority recruitment of migrant workers, we have radiated and driven 1,500 households and more than 4,000 people to steadily increase their income." Xu Junjiu, general manager of the company, said that during the picking season, the per capita income of migrant workers increased by more than 15,000 yuan.
Similar industrial chain extensions have also taken root in the Xiaomi industry. The Aohan dry farming system is a globally important agricultural cultural heritage, and millet is a representative local agricultural product. The entire flag maintains a stable planting area of 1 million acres of millet all year round, with an annual output of 300 million kilograms of high-quality millet.
Guo Yongpeng, director of the Aohan Millet Industry Development Service Center, said that in recent years, the local area has continued to promote standardized planting, green management and control, and large-scale operations, making up for shortcomings in sorting and screening, intensive processing, warehousing logistics, and brand marketing, and promoting the expansion of millet from raw grain exports to multi-grain gift boxes, instant millet and other diversified products.
"We have polished the golden signboard of 'Hometown of Millet in the World' and opened up online and offline sales channels, so that the good products cultivated for thousands of years can go out of Aohan and sell well across the country." Guo Yongpeng said.
Unlike millet, which relies on traditional dry farming for development, the cattle and sheep industry is based on local breeding and is connected to large-scale processing. Relying on rich forage resources, Aohan Banner continues to implement the "Excellent Cattle and Strong Sheep" project, and the current number of beef cattle is stable at 320,000. Locally cultivate leading livestock enterprises and promote the entire chain of cattle and sheep breeding, standardized breeding, slaughtering and processing, intensive processing, and cold chain sales. Inner Mongolia Zhongao Food Co., Ltd. has the annual production capacity of slaughtering 100,000 beef cattle, 1 million mutton sheep, and 7,000 tons of deeply processed products. Its products are exported to Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia, West Asia and other regions.
"I am a native of Aohan. I used to work odd jobs outside the home and my income was unstable. Now I work outside my home and my income is stable. I don't have to wander around all year round. I can earn money to support my family and take care of the elderly and children." Cheng Lipeng is a beneficiary of the employment generated by this industry. The company also drives surrounding farmers to increase their income through order acquisition, guaranteed purchase and storage, etc.
From seabuckthorn forests to millet fields to beef and mutton processing workshops, Aohan Banner's characteristic industries have different paths, but the core is the same: on the premise of maintaining the ecological bottom line, extend the industrial chain and broaden the market, rely on leading enterprises to drive, order connections, and nearby employment, so that more people can share the fruits of development.
Sun Guangtong, secretary of the Aohan Banner Committee, said that the local area will continue to build a strong ecological security barrier, consolidate the foundation of the country's important agricultural and livestock product production base, and promote the coordinated development and mutual promotion of ecological protection and characteristic industries.
