Data source: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, etc.
Go to the countryside to go to the market!
At the foot of Changbai Mountain, at the autumn village fair in Liangjiang Town, Antu County, Jilin Province, there are a dazzling array of hazelnuts and mushrooms in the mountains and forests, shouts one after another, and an endless stream of customers. A big gathering opened up the harvest in the fields and the dining tables of the residents.
The camera turned to the Yellow River Delta. At the Xindian Fair in Dongying District, Dongying City, Shandong Province, there were many young people. Xindian Daji, which has a history of more than 600 years, is now full of literary and artistic atmosphere. Handmade jewelry, cultural and creative ornaments, and freshly ground coffee are very popular. Tourists can not only shop for goods but also have fun.
Rural folk customs evolved from a long farming culture and folk markets full of rich flavor of life have now become a new carrier for the integration of agriculture, culture and tourism, and a new window for observing rural consumption. The "small but beautiful" rural cultural tourism industry represented by rural gatherings is booming. In 2025, the operating income of leisure agriculture will reach 950 billion yuan.
Why is going to the market so popular? A great gathering of traditions and experience of fire. From carrying baskets to buy vegetables, carrying baskets to hawk, to checking in and interacting, and playing while shopping, rural markets have broken through the traditional market form and become an "interface" connecting rural e-commerce, product exhibitions and sales. For example, at the Caowa Fair in Linshu County, Shandong Province, stall owners dressed in traditional Hanfu live-streamed their sales, and many netizens "planted grass" online and checked in offline. New experiences continue to inspire new business formats. From being a gathering place for people in the past, to now integrating intangible cultural heritage exhibitions, farming experiences, B&B catering and other business formats, rural markets attract tourists and retain guests. They have become an integral part of "county tourism" and rural tourism. In Lantian County, Shaanxi Province, visit the Jiaodai Market called "369, Jiaodai Walk" and enjoy a cup of village coffee in the quiet countryside. More traffic will lead to "retention". In Fuyang District, Hangzhou, the "Fuchun Mountain Living Season" event themed on the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter entered Xindeng Ancient Town in autumn. It set up offline stalls for exhibitions and online live broadcasts, and jointly promoted high-quality agricultural products such as fresh pears, rice wine, and handmade crispy rice. It integrated beautiful landscapes, authentic local products, and wonderful singing and dancing performances. It has become a new attempt for a cultural and creative market to enter the countryside. The new consumption scenarios and new cultural tourism formats emerging from the vast fields have once again confirmed that rural areas have rich and diverse values and the development potential of rural industries is huge.
The popularity of rural shopping malls stems from complying with the new trend of experiential consumption. From becoming popular to staying popular, it is necessary to work hard and work hard over a long period of time to consolidate the foundation of industrial development and promote new rural industries and new formats to increase their efficiency. For example, rural charm is a prominent feature of "tours to the county" and rural tours. Rural scenic spots must get rid of the misunderstanding of "everyone is the same", fully explore the characteristics, identify differences, turn new ideas into creativity, and let "micro-landscapes" such as fields, farmhouses, and markets release huge value. At the same time, infrastructure such as parking lots and tourist toilets must be improved. The simplicity and modernity complement each other, and the beauty of the countryside can accurately meet the needs of consumption, turning tourists' nostalgia into a good experience of "wanting to come again".
The purpose of establishing industry is to enrich the people. The vitality of new rural industries and new business formats lies in driving farmers. In practice, various localities continue to explore interest-linking methods such as "company + village collective + farmer households" to improve the mechanism of linking farmers with farmers, leaving more jobs in rural areas and leaving more value-added benefits of the industrial chain to farmers. For example, at the Guangxi Supply and Marketing Fair, high-quality local agricultural products were on display, broadening sales channels and helping Bagui’s local good products go out of the mountains. Only when villagers fully share the dividends from the development of new industries can rural industries develop more steadily and sustainably.
Industrial revitalization is the top priority of rural revitalization. The rural agglomeration, connected to rural development on one end and urban consumption on the other, will surely provide a steady stream of new momentum for the revitalization of rural industries. (People’s Daily Wang Hao)
