How green growing transforms local towns and public mindsets
ORGANIC farms are popping up in villages on the outskirts of Shanghai, as both consumers and farmers begin to appreciate the benefits of healthier, more nutritious food grown without pesticides and chemical fertilizers.
Modern farms using eco-friendly agricultural techniques are changing the face of some rural villages.
Qianxiaoju Innovative Farm
Huang Guili’s tangerine farm on Changxing Island in Chongming District has not only bred a new variety of tangerine with an edible peel, but it has also created a bucolic, romantic environment that dispels the stereotyped image of traditional farms.
The farm itself is inside a nature reserve. It is abundant with tangerine groves, colorful vegetable gardens, natural fishponds and an array of native, wild plants. Birdsong and the fragrance of flowers greet people at dawn, and a chorus of frogs caps the day at dusk.
The farm has a restaurant with large glass windows that look out over the area. The atmosphere resembles a chic café in downtown Shanghai. All dishes are made with food grown on the farm. Workshops are regularly held to demonstrate organic cultivation and even give visitors the chance to make tomato juice and tangerine jam.
The farm’s shop sell products produced there, with the tangerines the star attraction. Also popular is homemade soap made with tangerine oils.
Address: No. 680, Dadong Village, Shuxin Town, Chongming Island
Contact: mooyuu@hotmail.com
Mooyuu Organic Farm
Shen Hong’s rice paddy-cum-turtle farm adopts a simplistic style of returning to nature. Located in Xianqiao Town on Chongming Island, the farm is surrounded by local houses and land and doesn’t stand out at all.
Visitors can enjoy dishes made from the farm’s own produce, including rice, seasonal vegetables, fish, crayfish, crab and pancake turtles. The farm also offers cabins for overnight stays. They are basic but neat and well-equipped.
The farm holds workshops for the public, which are popular with families. Children can learn about vegetables, rice growing and aquaculture.
Address: No. 1599, Fenghuang Ave, Changxing Island
Contact: service@qianxiaoju.com
Heping Village in Jinshan District has forged a different route to eco-farming by revamping existing farms instead of creating new ones. The village, famous for its peaches, now embraces green cultivation methods in its orchards.
In 2012, the town was honored as “exemplary” village. Its Jinshan peaches and Yangchuan noodles, watermelons, figs and onions are so prized that many Shanghai residents drive out to the village on weekends to buy produce and enjoy an outing in the countryside.
In an effort to attract more visitors, the village has opened a 24-hour food market and created a shopping street.
How to get there: Take Metro Line 1 to Lianhua Road Station and transfer to bus Lianzhu Line (Lianhua Road to Zhujing) and then Zhuqianwei Line.