Farmers in Meiqi village pick roses every morning. [Photo/wxrb.com]
Farmers and government officials celebrated the third Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival in Meiqi village, Yixing city, Wuxi, on Sept 22.
Quality agricultural products developed in Wuxi and Yixing were exhibited and sold at a free market during the event. A livestreaming event was held as well to promote local agricultural products to consumers all over the country.
Roses developed in Meiqi village and lotus seeds from Fangzhuang village were popular at the event.
The rose farm built in Meiqi village covers 44.7 hectares, and went into operation in 2019. With high appreciation and byproduct value, the output value of the rose farm reached 1.5 million yuan ($220,868) over the year.
Over 30,000 people visited the farm to admire the flowers and enjoy a rural tour of Meiqi village during this year's May Day holiday.
A new rose processing factory will open in November, and is expected to process picked flowers into five categories of products. The annual output value of roses per hectare will then reach 150,000 yuan.
Quality agricultural products developed in Wuxi and Yixing are exhibited and sold at a free market during the event on Sept 22. [Photo/wxrb.com]
Shi Chunshan, a local in Fangzhuang village, earns his living by planting lotuses, picking their seeds and processing them for sale. Farmers like Shi can earn over 30,000 yuan a year, he said.
The Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival, launched in 2018, is celebrated nationwide every year on the autumnal equinox, the 16th of the 24 solar terms of the Chinese lunar calendar. This year, the festival fell on Sept 23.
