Rural revitalization is built on industry, and enriching the people is the foundation. In Hongmiao Village, Hanji Township, neatly arranged aquaculture ponds ripple with blue waves and brim with vitality. The Luoyang Aquatic Breeding Base, covering 2,500 acres, relies on an innovative three-dimensional symbiotic farming model of rice, shrimp, crab, and fish. It has broken through the single-production bottleneck of traditional agriculture and forged a distinctive rural industrial path featuring ecological improvement, industrial efficiency, increased incomes for the masses, and green development.
Leveraging high-quality water and soil resources and scientific farming techniques, the base achieves multi-species coexistence and mutual benefit among rice, shrimp, crab, and fish. It not only cultivates high-quality green agricultural products but also builds a platform for employment and income growth right at the doorstep, bringing the village collective an annual income of 35,000 yuan.
Scaling Up the Foundation, Building Capacity for Expansion, and Steadily Upgrading the Specialty Farming Industry
Luoyang Aquatic boasts 2,500 acres of standardized aquaculture ponds and is the leading ecological farming demonstration base in Hongmiao Village. At present, the base has established a 600-acre comprehensive rice-shrimp-crab farming demonstration zone. Through phased practical exploration, the farming model has matured and its economic benefits have become prominent. The plan is to expand the core ecological farming area to 1,000 acres next year.
Empowering with Quality Seeds, Ecological Planting, and Unlocking New Advantages in Green Agriculture
Unlike traditional rice cultivation, the base exclusively introduces the high-quality innovative rice variety Jufeng No. 6. This variety can reach a plant height of two meters, with tall and lush plants, a well-developed root system, and extremely strong stress resistance. It requires no pesticide spraying throughout the growing period, ensuring the green safety of the rice from the source. At the same time, the straw of Jufeng No. 6 rice does not need to be burned, embodying the concept of green, low-carbon agricultural development. In terms of edible value, Jufeng No. 6 rice has a slow glycemic rise, suitable for the dietary needs of middle-aged and elderly people and those managing blood sugar. In terms of yield, it can reach 600 to 1,000 jin per mu. In terms of planting mode, the base adopts a standardized sparse-dense transplanting specification of 1 meter by 1 meter, allowing ventilation, light penetration, and water transparency, achieving one planting and two harvests, enabling double rice income from a single acre.
Three-Dimensional Symbiosis, Mutual Benefit, and Building an Efficient Circular Farming System
The three-dimensional integrated farming model of rice, shrimp, crab, and fish is the core feature and core competitiveness of Luoyang Aquatic. The tall and dense Jufeng No. 6 rice plants take root in the water, forming a natural underwater ecological barrier. They not only shade and cool the water body, stabilizing water temperature and quality, but also continuously oxygenate through photosynthesis, providing sufficient oxygen, suitable temperature, and habitat for shrimp and crab growth. This effectively solves the problems of low oxygen, large temperature differences, and low survival rates in traditional aquaculture. At the same time, the swimming and foraging of shrimp and crabs loosen the soil and water, suppress weeds, and their excrement provides natural organic fertilizer for the rice, forming a virtuous ecological cycle of "rice nourishing aquatic products, aquatic products nourishing rice."
Superior ecology nurtures premium quality. The crabs farmed at the base are plump, with female crabs reaching a net weight of 2.3 liang and male crabs reaching 3.3 liang. The crab roe is full, the meat is firm, and the taste is sweet without fishiness. The aquaculture ponds can achieve "multiple farming in one pond," with freshwater fish co-cultured in the crab farming waters. The base can produce over 300 jin of crayfish per mu and 30 to 50 jin of crabs per mu. Combined with the income from double-season rice and co-cultured fish, it truly achieves multiple uses of one water body, multiple harvests from one pond, and multiple profits from one acre.
Industry as the Backbone, Local Employment, and Activating New Momentum for Enriching the People and Increasing Income
The base currently has more than 20 long-term workers on duty, with a monthly salary starting at 4,500 yuan. During the peak shrimp season, additional performance bonuses are provided, bringing comprehensive annual income to a stable 50,000 to 55,000 yuan. At the same time, the base employs more than 20 temporary workers year-round, with a daily wage of 130 yuan. The base also accommodates the employment needs of the elderly in the village. Left-behind elderly people in their sixties and seventies can work nearby, increasing their annual income by 20,000 to 30,000 yuan.
A pond of clear water nurtures an ecological industry, and a fertile land paves the way to prosperity. In the future, as the farming scale continues to expand, farming technology continues to upgrade, and the industrial chain gradually improves, Luoyang Aquatic will continue to polish its distinctive ecological farming brand and help the rural revitalization cause of Hanji Township improve quality and efficiency.