Chapter 255 Investigation Trip
In fact, with the rise in soybean prices, it is completely a good thing for Jiahe Grain and Oil's current situation.

The three oil factories acquired by Jiahe Grain and Oil in Fujian Province, Liaoning Province and Guangdong Province have been put into formal production.

Two grain processing plants in Jiangsu Province and Heilongjiang Province, each with an investment of 10 billion yuan, as well as several factories in Sichuan Province, Hubei Province and other places, are expected to be officially put into operation in early 2007.

It is now the end of September, so there are still about three months left.

During this period, international food prices are likely to maintain an upward trend.

This also makes the price gap between imported genetically modified soybeans and domestic soybeans smaller and smaller.

Originally, the loss for processing one ton of domestic soybeans was 900 yuan, but now the loss may only be 600 yuan. If the price continues to rise, there may be room for profit.

This is the trend.

After occupying most of the domestic production capacity, the four major grain traders also want to gradually increase their profit margins.

So, at this time, Jiahe Grain and Oil also started to stockpile soybeans in large quantities?

It seems like there is no loss no matter what.

In Guangdong at the end of September, the sun is still scorching, but the autumn wind still brings a little coolness.

At the Fuzhiyuan Oil Factory on the outskirts of the city, rows of tall steel machines stand.

Guo Yang, wearing a white safety helmet, accompanied by Gao De, shuttled among the busy machines.

Soybeans roll down the busy conveyor belt, are screened and cleaned, and finally sent into the huge grinder.

In the corner of the factory, there is a pile of bean dregs like a small mountain. Although the bean dregs have lost their oil, they still emit a faint bean fragrance.

Although the entire Jiahe Grain and Oil project plans to invest 60 billion yuan just for mergers and acquisitions and basic factory buildings.

But this was indeed Guo Yang's first time seeing soybean processing.
He stopped in front of the pile of bean dregs, looked sideways at Gao De, and said, "This is soybean meal, right?"

Gao De smiled and said, "Yes, soybean meal is the main raw material for making livestock and poultry feed. About 85% of soybean meal is used for poultry and pig feeding."

Soybean meal contains about 40% to 43% protein, in addition to a variety of amino acids and nutrients.

In comparison, the protein content of Alfalfa No. 1 produced in the Hexi Corridor is about 32%, which is unique in the world. However, it is still inferior to soybean meal in terms of protein.

Likewise, corn has an even lower protein content.

The silage corn variety cultivated by Guo Yang in April this year was named Tianyu No. 4, and its whole-plant protein content is about 8%.

However, soybeans, alfalfa, and corn each have their own focus.

Soybeans are suitable for livestock and poultry that require high-protein feed. They are expensive, nutritious, and have antiviral and antibacterial properties. They are also an important human food.

Alfalfa is high in protein and rich in essential nutrients, making it suitable for use in combination with other feeds. Its price is also not low.

Corn starch is richer in starch, primarily responsible for providing energy and carbohydrates, and is less expensive, but also lower in protein.

The three can partially replace each other, but in reality, none of them can be missing.

The sunlight shines into the factory through the windows.

Guo Yang looked at the plump yellow soybeans and asked, "What is the protein content of Tiandou No. 1?"

Gao De laughed and said, "This year's Tiandou No. 1 has a protein content of 43%. Right now, this type of supply is in short supply."

Guo Yang asked: "Where is the batch of organic soybeans?"

Gao De was silent for a moment, then said, "We suffered a loss. Jiu San Grain and Oil bought out all of it, leaving nothing for Jia He Grain and Oil."

Guo Yang felt a little regretful. At that time, Gao De should have come when the organic soybeans were ripe. He appreciated the fact that he did not directly shirk the responsibility.

"It shouldn't be too low. Before planting that batch of soybeans, we tilled the soil with alfalfa for one season, and the soil condition was much better."

Gao De said: "We don't buy a lot of Tiandou No. 1 soybeans. We are now buying soybeans from Henan, Anhui, Jiangsu and Shandong, where summer planting has ended early."

"The quality is also good. The protein content of soybeans stored by farmers is lower."

Guo Yang asked: "The longer it is stored, the lower the protein content?"

"Yes."

Guo Yang thought about it. In recent years, the price of domestic soybeans has been low, and the state-owned grain reserves have only been purchased, with few auctions. Could the soybeans in temporary storage be about to expire?

No wonder the national grain reserves have increasingly stringent requirements on the moisture content of soybeans.

Farmers were unable to meet the requirements, so they called on Jiahe to purchase and process soybeans.

Gao De said: "The situation should be better next year, and Jiahe should have its own planting base."

Since Gaode took over Jiahe Grain and Oil, it has been making arrangements according to Jiahe's plan.

Northwest, Northeast, Huanghuaihai, and Southwest, these are several soybean bases that have been approved.

Except for the northwest which is completely self-built, the other three places will still cooperate with farmers, adopting the traditional model of company + base + farmers.

It just so happens that after a season of improving the coastal saline-alkali land by planting alfalfa, using Tiandou No. 1 to improve it again will definitely have a very good effect.

Gao De continued, “The only concern now is that the returns from growing corn are too high. I’m afraid that once the coastal saline-alkali land is improved, farmers will stop growing soybeans and grow corn instead.”

Guo Yang also understood this situation, but was much more optimistic than him.

"No, this year's domestic corn production growth rate has already significantly exceeded the consumption growth rate, and it will only increase more next year. With more arable land in the future, the price will come down sooner or later."

After touring the factory, Guo Yang and Gao De came to the quiet office and talked about business while drinking tea.

"There is another task for you."

"What mission."

"One is to stockpile food. Every factory's warehouse should be filled as much as possible, including soybeans, corn, and wheat. The second is to go long in the futures market."

Gao De looked at him in surprise, it was a bit unbelievable, buying grain and going long at the same time, what kind of magical operation was this?
“No hedging?”

Guo Yang said seriously: "No."

Gao De's expression became more and more shocked. In this situation, if there was a downward trend, it would mean a double loss!

“What if there is a big fund shorting the market?”

Guo Yang already had an idea. Double losses correspond to double gains.

"I think the international grain prices will continue to rise in the next one or two years, and the international market will be bullish."

"As for the domestic Dalian Commodity Exchange, it will also follow the general trend and just need to control the margin ratio. In terms of funds, Jiahe is also a big fund."

"Weiguang Company will cooperate with you this time. Jiahe Grain and Oil will be in charge of the operation. We will stockpile grain and go long until the end of the first quarter of next year and then see the situation."

Gao De suddenly became more nervous. The risk of doing so was indeed quite high. The entire existing investment of Jiahe Grain and Oil would require 60 billion yuan.

Grain processing is an asset-intensive industry with high risks, and soybean processing is still in a loss-making state.

After the two communicated for a while, they finally settled the matter.

Gao De asked: "How much will it cost?"

Guo Yang shook his head and said, "I don't know the exact number, but it's no less than 30 billion yuan, and there's no upper limit for now."

Hearing that it was 30 billion, Gao De was slightly relieved. This amount of money would not cause much trouble in the international grain trade. But 30 billion was also a conservative figure estimated by Guo Yang.

The main reason is that the pie is bigger now and we can’t be too gambling anymore.

After the inspection trip to Guangdong Province, Guo Yang went to Hainan immediately.

The sunshine in early October was still hot and bright, but after just walking in the fields for a while, my body began to sweat.

But the progress is gratifying.

The newly contracted 5-acre seed production base has taken shape after four or five months of construction. The original barren slopes and stagnant water have been transformed into fertile fields.

At the original seed production base, on the fertile land, the seed rice has matured, and the golden rice ears are swaying gracefully.

Mainly Tiandao 22 cultivated in September last year and seawater rice cultivated in April this year.

According to the season, it will be the winter propagation season in another month. Half of the nearly twenty seeds that Guo Yang cultivated last month will be propagated here.

Among them, there are three types of soybean seeds: soybean seeds for cold areas, soybean seeds for northwestern arid areas, and soybean seeds for coastal areas.

They all have a common characteristic of high yield, with an output of 550 to 650 kilograms per mu.

As long as the soybean price can recover to above 2 yuan, the profit will not be much lower than that of corn.

In addition to soybeans, three varieties of rapeseed have also been cultivated: winter rapeseed in the Yangtze River Basin and the Yellow River Basin, and spring rapeseed in Meng, Long and Qing.

The coverage area is relatively wide, and the specific planting effect can only be known after trying it.

In addition, there are vegetables, fruit trees and livestock and poultry.

There are also four types of vegetable seeds: cucumber, eggplant, cabbage, and bitter gourd, which are also being propagated in Hainan.

The fruit trees include four varieties: citrus, banana, dragon fruit and apple, and new nurseries will be built in Hainan and Xinjiang provinces.

The investment in building a leading domestic nursery is only a few million, which is a piece of cake for Jiahe today.

Livestock and poultry include beef cattle, sheep, South American prawns, salmon, and Australian lobster.

The cattle and sheep all belong to Jiahe’s industrial chain. Guo Yang plans to put them in Awei Gobi, and the remaining three are to fulfill the promise of Northwest Seafood.

However, the livestock and poultry breeds are still kept by Guo Yang himself.

There's also a hop at the end.

There were 20 varieties in total, which consumed 2500 of his natural energy, but there was still a lot left.

It’s just that it’s hard to digest too many excellent varieties in a short period of time. We can’t just skip the current blue and purple grade seeds!

That's too wasteful.

Secondly, the next thing to be cultivated and purchased is red grade seeds, which needs to be taken a closer look.

Guo Yang also plans to diversify the consumption of natural energy.

For example, whether it is used in Africa and South America, or used to upgrade and transform agricultural machinery and production lines, Fengkai's research and development progress is too slow.

Today, the Hainan seed production base covers a vast area, but because few people come here, Guo Yang has no choice but to drive, walk, and use different means of transportation to get here.

It took three consecutive days to visit all the different sections including rice, cotton, soybeans, corn, vegetables, and nurseries.

The seedling cultivation direction of each variety is very different, but fortunately, Jiahe’s R&D and technical teams are also large.

Those graduates who studied genetic breeding engineering often went to Hainan when doing experiments and are very familiar with this aspect.

Guo Yang also communicated with each team, on the one hand to supplement his own learning, and on the other hand to understand the status of the researchers.

His hands-on attitude and work style have touched many people, and young people are becoming more willing to communicate with him.

Many life issues were raised.

For example, due to the hasty construction, the infrastructure of some project departments is still incomplete, prone to water and electricity shortages; the summer is hot and humid, there are many mosquitoes and other problems.

Guo Yang also made promises one by one, and even asked the person in charge, Wei Shuwen, to contact the construction team to make improvements on the spot.

The schedule was very tight, and even the evening time was not missed to provide employees with extra meals and communicate with them.

Guo Yang's actions these days also made Wei Shuwen, who had been accompanying him, feel deeply moved. Jiahe really does not keep idle people.

In fact, Guo Yang was also very tired, but he was holding his breath. Since he was here, he must do it well.

Only after his boss got on the plane did Wei Shuwen secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

A young man who just started working this year sat in the driver's seat and said with emotion: "The boss is finally gone!"

"I haven't dared to speak loudly these past two days."

Wei Shuwen pursed his lips and said, "I think you are the only one who gets excited when you toast to the boss."

The pickup truck started up and the ignition was on. The unpaved dirt road had been hit by heavy summer rains and was slightly bumpy, so the car was shaking.

The young man said, "I really admire him. The boss is only a few years older than me, but now he is already a leading figure in the domestic agriculture and animal husbandry industry."

Wei Shuwen took out a cigarette and lit it up. "People are different. Just do your current job well."

"Look at the boss's workload. Anyone who takes a break will probably be fired."

The young man turned his head and looked at Wei Shuwen in surprise, and asked, "Does Tianhe Seed Industry often fire people?"

"That's not true. Last year, many people were purged before they even finished celebrating the Chinese New Year."

The pickup truck was shaking violently, and Wei Shuwen shouted hurriedly: "Downshift quickly!"

The young man only had the opportunity to drive after coming to Tianhe. After a few months, he became proficient in driving. However, in a hurry, the pickup truck accidentally slipped into a puddle.

The wheels were buzzing and smoking and I couldn't get up.

Wei Shuwen said helplessly: "Call Xiao Zhang and ask him to drive over."

The young man was not surprised. There was a lot of rain in the summer and the cement roads were not well paved, so it was normal for the car to get stuck or fail to run uphill.

I feel a little uncomfortable if I don’t drag others or get dragged every week.

The roads in the rural areas are narrow, and some bases are near Wuzhi Mountain, where the slopes are steep and the roads are slippery. It has almost become a ritual for new employees to crash their cars into trees.
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The plane circled in familiar airspace.

Jiayuguan is like a shining pearl inlaid in the vast Gobi Desert, standing there quietly, weathering wind and rain and remaining tenacious.

In the future, there will be new urban areas on both sides of the river, wetlands, parks, and high-speed railways. There are also powerful national weapons hidden in the Gobi Desert.

The well-arranged buildings, tree-lined streets, and leisurely citizens all make people feel the tranquility and harmony of this city.

This is a city that many people yearn for.

But it is also a small Gobi desert city in the minds of some people, whom they try to avoid or even openly slander.

Guo Yang stared out the car window at the greenery on the Gobi Desert of the two cities, lost in thought.

One day, these deserts will disappear.

(End of this chapter)