Chapter 331 Pasture; Water Conservation Project

Bakersfield, California.

It was another comfortable day, but it was not a good day for Nitro Hay Company.

The white old man Barnes stood at the company gate waiting anxiously. The joy of making huge profits in the futures market could not hide the sadness on his face.

I couldn’t understand why, in just half a month, I had to go through the extremes of ice and fire.

Because he had obtained information about the mutant species of Tribulus terrestris and the red fire ants in advance, he and AIG made a huge profit in the Chicago futures market in more than half a month.

However, something happened at home.

Starting before the hay was cut, Ir Jacob, who stayed on the farm, reported that dodder had appeared on the alfalfa farm this year.

At first, he didn't take it seriously because Chicago was at a critical juncture and money could be made faster in the futures market.

But Il Jacob's report did not stop.

Due to the parasitism of dodder, alfalfa plants have begun to die. Existing methods cannot control it and it is spreading rapidly.

Barnes began to worry and called agricultural service companies, association experts and others for help.

In the end, the problem was still not solved, but it was harvest time, and Barnes breathed a sigh of relief. It didn't matter if the production was reduced or the quality was worse. The money he made in the futures market was enough to make up for it.

But the severity of the matter was beyond expectations. Just one week later, importers from island countries, South Korea and other countries not only refused to continue importing, but also applied for large-scale returns.

Even domestically, serious problems arose because many livestock suffered from pus and bleeding in their stomachs due to the failure to clear the weeds.

He realized something was wrong.

He hurried back to Bakersfield.

After waiting at the door for a while, Professor Putnam from Davis College finally arrived.

The group hurried to the farm, where the farm manager, Il Jacob, was already waiting there.

"What's going on now?" Barnes asked.

"The farm is finished," said El Jacob dejectedly.

Nitro's 18-acre alfalfa farm is located on the border between California and Arizona, close to the desert area. It is dry and rainy, and the climatic conditions are extremely suitable for the growth of alfalfa. The quality of the alfalfa produced is also top-notch in the world.

But as Barnes and Putnam drove through the farm, even after the crops had been mowed, the sight was still devastated.

In late October, the temperature began to drop, but on the farm, the situation after mowing was clear at a glance, and the dodder was clearly visible.

"How could this be?"

Barnes' heart was bleeding.

He was well aware of the harm that dodder could cause to alfalfa. The parasitic dodder would absorb water and nutrients from alfalfa, leading to a decrease in yield and quality.

But he was fine when he left last time. How big a problem could there be in such a short time?
However, the ubiquitous dodder slapped him in the face. He even saw a dodder plant with a diameter of more than ten meters.

The car stopped in front of the dodder plant.

Professor Putnam's expression was equally solemn. Under the entanglement and parasitism of dodder, the roots of this small circle of alfalfa had begun to rot and die.

“Have you applied pesticides?”

El Jacob said: "It's useless to use it. The chemical agents that worked in the past are difficult to kill the roots of dodder this time. It will come back soon."

“Is it genetically modified grass seed?”

"Partly."

Barnes was awakened and remembered the variant of Tribulus terrestris in Illinois. Netero also had a biotechnology laboratory and had bred a genetically modified forage grass variety a few years ago.

"Professor, are you saying that this dodder is also a mutant?"

"That should be it." Putnam said, "Generally, dodder doesn't spread so quickly. The base here is finished. We should change the crops we plant. Don't plant crops that can be parasitized by dodder for a few years."

"Is there really nothing we can do?"

Putnam remained silent and shook his head.

The plant grows in a tangled mass, with a diameter of up to 20 meters. Chemicals are difficult to kill, and the mortality rate of alfalfa plants is high...

The only solution that can be thought of is to change the crops and till the land as soon as possible so that dodder has no parasitic plants.

Several people went to check the production situation of the seed fields and found that the yield reduction was serious.

Putnam said: "This seed is also useless. There are too many dodder seeds mixed in it. It is useless."

Barnes was disappointed.

Alfalfa forage and seeds are Netero's two main businesses, and now both the forage and seed bases have suffered a fatal blow.

Netero's foundation was destroyed in an instant!

Professor Putnam took this matter very seriously and visited several large ranches in California and Arizona in the following days.

The situation was not as serious as Netero's alfalfa farm, but traces of dodder were also found.

Seven western states account for 99% of U.S. alfalfa exports, with California and Arizona accounting for the largest share.

These two states happened to be the sites of the accident.

This made him feel like he was facing a formidable enemy.

In the international grass product market, demand is growing, but quality is becoming increasingly prominent in the competition.

If dodder cannot be controlled, not only will the foreign trade advantage be lost, but the country's livestock industry will also suffer a severe blow.

However, just as Davis College took action, the international trade of American alfalfa suffered a series of heavy blows.

The order volume from island countries and South Korea continued to decline sharply, and some of the transactions that have already been completed are also being sued to the WTO.

In addition, due to the damage to livestock, the two countries have also successively introduced measures to restrict alfalfa imports from the United States.

Subsequently, important alfalfa trading partners of the United States, including Saudi Arabia, Canada, Pakistan, Switzerland, India, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, also issued announcements.

No alfalfa products will be imported from the United States until the United States resolves the quality issues of alfalfa products.

The business reputation accumulated over decades was damaged.

Alfalfa trade volume began to increase in countries such as Spain, France, and China.

...

Jiuquan.

When Guo Yang returned to the company, he had already gotten off work for a while, but when he passed by the Alfalfa Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Sales Department, he heard a noisy sound.

So he stood at the door for a while.

"Malaysia also wants 5000 tons? There's a feed and animal husbandry company in Aksai that should have 5000 tons left. Let's contact them."

"Glorious oat straw is not enough? Then we can ship it from Shandan. Shandan Horse Farm No. 11 and No. still have tons of oat straw."

"Minqin Xinyuan Grass Industry and Shengyuan Agriculture still have more than 3 tons of alfalfa bales. Ask Zhuang Zheng to help coordinate."

"Wuyuan? Wuyuan's alfalfa has already been ordered by domestic dairy companies. Contact Binhai Salt Alkali Land. It doesn't matter if the quality is a little lower."

"South Korea still needs it. Let's ask the companies in Heilongjiang Province if they can take it."

"I don't want to accept the orders from the Japanese anymore. Why not? You'd be a bastard if you don't want to make money."

Lin Zhang walked out with a cigarette in his mouth, holding the phone in one hand and taking out a lighter with the other. Just as he was about to light it, he saw a figure standing outside the door.

He shivered and almost dropped the cigarette.

"Boss, why are you here? Come in and sit down."

Lin Zhang was one of Yu Xiaochuan's henchmen in the past. After Yu Xiaochuan went to the Middle East, he recommended Lin Zhang to be the vice president of sales of Alfalfa Agriculture and Animal Husbandry.

His business ability is impeccable, but he has a bit of a gangster vibe.

Guo Yang smiled and said, "It's okay. Seeing that you are busy, I will just listen at the door. Business has been very good recently."

"Foreign trade is very good this year. The export volume of forage grass and seeds is growing rapidly. Enterprises capable of processing are making a lot of money."

"Okay, go and smoke. Oh, by the way, send me a recent order report."

When I arrived at the office, Lin Zhang also sent the report over.

There was a long list of companies on the table. Guo Yang counted them and found that there were 21 companies in the province.

In addition, there are dozens of enterprises in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shandong and Heilongjiang, all with production capacities of more than 10,000 tons.

All added up, the annual processing capacity exceeds 400 million tons, accounting for more than 80% of the country, and the revenue from commercial forage sales alone is consistently over billion yuan.

These are all the advantages brought by industrial clusters.

Basically, all companies capable of processing have some connection with Jiahe, including seeds, agricultural machinery, processing equipment... Through this link, the leading domestic forage companies are closely linked together.

Work together to develop industry standards, collaborate in production, maintain industry reputation, and jointly face domestic and foreign markets.

Before the rise of alfalfa farming and animal husbandry, domestic alfalfa production was stable at more than 2000 million tons, but commercial alfalfa was less than 50 tons.

The quality is mostly at the second and third level, or even below level three.

During the same period, most imported alfalfa were special grade and first grade, and their packaging, shelf life and appearance were all higher than those of domestic alfalfa.

Several years passed.

The entire industry has been turned upside down.

The yield per unit area has increased, the quality has improved, the logistics costs have been greatly reduced, the commercial alfalfa production capacity has increased eightfold, and the income of the entire industry has increased significantly.

Due to the melamine incident, the dairy industry has increased its demand for high-quality forage.

This year alone, domestic demand for commercial alfalfa is close to 200 million tons and is still growing rapidly.

In the international market, prices have been rising as the United States, the largest exporter of alfalfa, has been hit hard.

The average price has reached US$396/ton, and Alfalfa No. 1 has even reached US$415/ton.

Domestic and foreign markets are booming, and the industry's spring has arrived.

In addition to forage, the forage seed market is also improving.

In fact, China has always been a major exporter of alfalfa seeds, exporting several thousand tons of seeds every year.

However, the price of exported seeds is not high. Most of the time, the price is less than US$2000 per ton, which is equivalent to less than RMB 1 per catty.

However, due to the development of the alfalfa industry cluster in recent years, many forage companies have been engaged in professional seed production.

In the past, the industry entry threshold for forage seed production was very low, and any village could produce it.

When market demand is strong, companies rush to compete with each other on price, resulting in disorderly competition.

But now with the existence of industrial clusters, advantageous enterprises have already formed very high financial and technological barriers, and scale has further reduced production costs, making it difficult for latecomers to have a chance.

The seed yield per mu has increased by leaps and bounds. Originally, it could only produce 40 to 50 kilograms of seeds, but now the average has reached more than 80 kilograms.

The leading companies such as Brilliant Seeds and Oasis Grass Industry can generally achieve a level of 120 to 160 jin per mu, and Alfalfa's Alfalfa No. 1 has been stable at 200 jin per mu for a long time.

At the same time, due to specialized production, the quality rate of alfalfa seeds has increased from 40% to more than 80%, and the germination rate has been greatly improved.

A virtuous cycle of 'large-scale production - comprehensive promotion of technical experience - improved product quality - smooth international trade - gradual market stabilization - large-scale development' has gradually taken shape.

After reading the information, Guo Yang couldn't help but feel excited.

The alfalfa industry is crucial in Jiahe's system. It can not only control saline-alkali land, but also provide momentum for downstream dairy and meat industries.

It is also friendly to soil and water conservation in the northwest.

Guo Yang weighed the issue in his mind for a moment. Jiahe Ecological Environment Restoration Company was composed of the Alfalfa Engineering Department, which weakened Alfalfa's functions.

In this case, let's make alfalfa purer.

After coming up with an idea, Guo Yang called Xie Shijie, and after a few pleasantries, he got down to business and adjusted the business structure of Muhe.

The main business is alfalfa seed production and forage processing, supplemented by new variety breeding and forage processing.

Although the forage business is booming, the main revenue of Alfalfa in the past two years still comes from Alfalfa No. 1 seeds. In 2006, the revenue exceeded 85 billion yuan, of which 1 billion yuan was contributed by Alfalfa No. .

It is certain that the revenue this year will exceed 20 billion yuan, but the income from the forage business is still only 2 to 3 billion yuan, which also includes acquisition and processing.

The forage business cannot be abandoned.

However, the seed business needs to accelerate its overseas expansion, including the export of Alfalfa No. 1 to some countries.

Building forage bases overseas is also an option. Domestic arable land should not be developed too aggressively. The best situation is to be self-sufficient and have some surplus for export.

After dealing with Muhe’s issue, Guo Yang began to deal with the real business of today’s overtime work: financial planning.

The money earned from futures trading was a bit too much, a total of 1848 billion yuan including principal and interest.

After thinking for a moment, Guo Yang began to write and draw on a blank document, calculating and revising at the same time. It took him more than an hour to produce a draft.

First, the domestic warehousing and logistics plan is 150 billion yuan; overseas, we will also take advantage of the financial crisis to deploy 200 billion yuan. A total of 350 billion yuan;
Second, Jiahe ecological environment restoration: Dunhuang West Lake Wetland, 300 billion;
20. Fengkai drip irrigation water-saving factory, billion;
Fourth, the Jiahe Nutrition and Health Research Institute directly under the group, 10 billion;
120. The Biochemical Energy Division directly under the Group: 4 billion for the germplasm base; 40 billion for the four processing plants;
Sixth, Jiahe grain and oil industry chain is complete, 20 billion;
10. Wine and beverage company under Hexi Dairy, billion;
10. Golden Harvest Supermarket: billion;
Ninth, Denong Agricultural Supermarket invested RMB 40 billion and expanded to 2 stores nationwide;

10. The budget for Shahai Agriculture and Animal Husbandry next year is billion...

A lot of them are listed, including 18 branches and two directly affiliated companies, basically all of them are taken into consideration, and the total is less than 950 billion.

Moreover, it is impossible to invest all this money all at once. It is basically a budget for 2 to 3 years.

Of course, this is just what he thought in his mind, and each branch company must report the detailed plan.

However, he estimated that the funding needs reported by the branch might not be more than what he wrote. For example, in the bioenergy sector, Ning Xiaojing's planned total amount was only 100 billion, which was 60 billion less than his.

Money is still very valuable in this era, yet even so, there is still only nearly 900 billion in profits left from the futures market.

If the revenue of Tianhe, Muhe, Hexi and Fengkai this year is included, the remaining funds will far exceed 1000 billion.

There was too much money and Guo Yang didn't know how to spend it. The main reason was that the current pace of development was already fast enough, and if it went any faster, he would be in big trouble.

After some thought, the best pool of funds is still the financial market.

However, there have been thunders in the financial circle recently, global stock markets are not peaceful, and the international commodity market is also uneasy.

There's really nowhere good to go.

Apart from some safe investments, earning interest is the safest option.

Guo Yang sighed: "Annoying!"

Lin Zhang knocked on the door with his briefcase slung across his shoulder and asked, "Boss, what are you fussing about? Are you busy?"

Guo Yang closed the computer and said, "No need to be busy. Let's go have some midnight snack together."

"okay."

It was already quite late and there was no one else in the office, so Luo Xiu and I headed towards the city.

On the way, Guo Yang also called Qu Yang, Yan Qun and other people who had not settled here, and then sent a message in the spam group.

The three of them found a barbecue restaurant with a nice environment and ordered some red willow lamb skewers, lamb kidneys and so on.

Guo Yang asked: "Lin Zhang, where are you from?"

"From Heyuan, Guangdong."

"That's quite a distance."

Lin Zhang said: "I came to the Northwest by chance. I started out as a foreign trade trader in Yangcheng. I met Mr. Yu at the Canton Fair and was brought to the Northwest."

Guo Yang said, "You've been doing pretty well in Muhe these past two years, right?"

"It's great. The product quality is solid. Except for the fact that we were tricked by the Japanese at the beginning of this year, we have basically never let down our brand. Recently, the international market has been going crazy."

"Have you ever thought about living in Jiuquan permanently?"

“I have thought about it, but it’s not very realistic.”

After a while, the skewers were served. The fat was roasted crispy, the lean meat was chewy and tender, and the fat and meat were well-balanced.

"Eat while you wait." Guo Yang gave Lin Zhang and Luo Xiu a bunch of noodles each and said, "What if the company gives out houses here?"

Lin Zhang said: "My family is all in Heyuan, and the conditions in Jiuquan are worse in all aspects."

This situation is very common in Jiahe. Many people who were recruited from other places have no intention of living here permanently.

After chatting for a while, Qu Yang and Yan Qun followed.

The two of them also live alone in Jiuquan. Qu Yang is fine, as he travels on business for a long time and can still go back home from time to time.

Because Yan Qun is in charge of seed production, he basically works in the Hexi Corridor area, and it is far and inconvenient for him to go home.

They also had places in Jiahe’s first batch of employee housing, but given their income, one house was more of a symbolic meaning.

Education, environment, economy...Jiuquan has no advantages in any area.

Just because Jiahe is here.

After drinking two bottles of wine, Qu Yang said: "In fact, many young people in Tianhe are willing to settle down in Jiuquan, but Jiuquan is too big. There is a couple in the company, the girl is in Suzhou, and the boy is in Yumen for a long time. This is no different from being in different places."

"Also, the proportion of boys at the grassroots level is too high. If you don't date in school, it will be even harder to date after graduation."

Yan Qun pondered and said, "Actually, Jiahe is not bad. At least the salary is high, which gives you an advantage when you go out for blind dates. Once the employee housing is issued, the situation will only get better."

Staff housing is more attractive to young people, most of whom are agricultural students, and their families rarely can help them buy houses.

Besides, this was 2007.

We can speed up the progress on the staff housing issue.

Don't limit yourself to Jiuquan. You should also give proper consideration to branches in other places and take advantage of the real estate boom to start up first.

Lin Zhang asked, "Boss, what are you worried about when you get off work? That voice really scared me."

The others also looked over curiously, and Lin Zhang explained.

Guo Yang raised his head and drank a glass of beer, then said with a smile: "I am worried about too much money."

"what?"

Several people were dumbfounded.

Regarding Jiahe’s operations in the international futures market, the people here only know that they made a lot of money, but they don’t know how much exactly.

Guo Yang revealed some inside information.

How to use the news of domestic production increase to short sell heavily, and then accurately judge that the United States will reduce production and go long.

The ups and downs of the story, with a little exaggeration, made several people listen attentively, and they also understood the confidence of the group in promoting the national desert park.

But they still don't understand the boss's troubles.

...

Dunhuang, Reed Forest Protection Station.

"Did you really pass?"

"Well, the Ministry of Agriculture and the State Forestry Administration have both passed the meeting. The next step is to wait for approval from the top."

After hanging up the phone, Wu Xiong was still a little bit unbelievable.

At this moment, he already knew the amount of investment that Jiahe had made in the Dunhuang West Lake project: 300 billion yuan!

MD! Protecting 100 West Lakes would be enough.

Wu Xiong couldn't wait to convey the news to Bao Hairong, Yuan Haifeng, Zhao Xin, Sun Xing and others.

Upon hearing the news, the guns of the Administration were raised.

Bao Hairong asked: "Where is Secretary Wang? Hasn't he returned from the province yet?"

At this time, Wu Xiong's phone rang again. After a moment, he said with some regret: "Secretary Wang has been transferred to another place."

A group of people felt the energy of Golden Harvest.

I can't afford it!

In name, the West Lake Management Bureau has the responsibility of supervision, but as long as Jiahe does not act recklessly, it can only cooperate with the work.

Not long after, Niu Hulin called Wu Xiong again and said that the newly established Jiahe Ecological Environment Restoration Company would bring a team of experts to formulate an implementation plan.

The Administration will also be needed to assist in on-site inspections.

Of course, there are allowances.

This made the people in the administration quite excited.
-
In the next few days, Jiahe was busy with various procedures, and it was expected to continue for some time.

Guo Yang is no longer concerned about the use of funds. He still has 200 billion financial funds overseas to maintain market participation with low risk.

Another 200 billion yuan was deposited in overseas banks to earn short-term interest and was used to participate in acquisitions during the financial crisis.

The remaining funds were returned to the country.

In addition to the funds needed by various companies, the remaining 500 billion yuan will be used to invest in low-risk investments such as real estate, Internet and technology companies, and bonds.

After arranging the use of funds, Guo Yang began to follow up on the most important aspect of the West Lake Wetland Project: leaving land fallow and saving water.

It is difficult to leave land fallow at this stage and only a small number of pilot projects can be carried out, but water-saving drip irrigation is imperative.

After an in-depth investigation, Guo Yang realized how low the water-saving irrigation rate was on each farm.

Please note that this is not drip irrigation. General anti-seepage main and branch canal systems are counted as water-saving irrigation. Even so, the area of ​​water-saving irrigation is less than 30%.

The actual drip irrigation area is less than 10 acres.

The potential for water conservation is quite high, but the difficulty of implementation is also quite large.

During this period, Guo Yang personally stationed in the Water Conservancy Bureau and other departments, with the natural purpose of formulating supporting policies.

The city still has the capability to build some trunk and branch canals.

Wei Zheng is the head of the Municipal Water Conservancy Bureau. After some wrangling, he said, "We can't have more. We have four large irrigation areas, seven key medium-sized irrigation areas, and a five-year water-saving target of 4 million mu. The city's target is to save 7 million cubic meters of water. This is already the city's limit."

Guo Yang said: "Five years is too long, three years is more appropriate, and the main and branch canals in the Shule River basin should be completed next year."

Wei Zheng said: "The time is too tight, it can't be completed."

Guo Yang looked at Qin Lijun standing beside him and said, "Jiahe will promote drip irrigation for corn and cotton in Yumen, Guazhou and Dunhuang next spring. If the channel is not completed, we won't be able to choose a location for the head."

Qin Lijun pondered and said, "Old Wei, we will do our best to protect the Shule River Basin, and we can slow down the other areas."

Wei Zhengdao said, "What should we do if Jinta, Suzhou and other counties cause trouble?"

"Let them come to me." Qin Lijun said, "Mr. Guo, what do you think of this?"

Guo Yang smiled and said, "No problem."

The city has a total area of ​​1.24 million m0.413, of which at least one-third, or 0.9 million m, is allocated to the Shule River Basin. The first-phase target is million m.

Including the pilot projects of fallow land, not to mention 10% fallow land, even 1% fallow land would be 7 mu, which is at least 0.2 million m.

The water conservation target can be achieved if the fallow area in the basin reaches 3%.

However, the 3% target is too high, and it is more reliable to achieve water conservation through the popularization of drip irrigation.

Qin Lijun said, "I have also made an appointment with the Provincial Agricultural Reclamation Bureau. Most of the farms of the Provincial Agricultural Reclamation Bureau in Jiuquan are under the control of Yasheng Farm. Jiahe should have had a lot of dealings with them, right?"

"We have a lot of overlap in business," Guo Yang said, "but I haven't met with the senior management of Yasheng Tianyuan yet."

There are three major companies under the Longnan Agricultural Reclamation Corporation: Yasheng Group, Mogao Group, and Manor Ranch, all of which are listed companies.

The Yinma and Huanghua farms in Yumen, as well as the Dunhuang farm, all belong to Yasheng.

These farms are mainly involved in industries such as hops, spices, peppers, sunflowers, wolfberries, and cotton.

Qin Lijun said, "Then let's go to Xiaheqing Farm tomorrow. The senior executives of Nongken and Yasheng, as well as people from Tsingtao Beer, are going to inspect the beer garden area. Let's go and meet them together."

Tsingtao Beer is here at this time? Guo Yang paused and said, "Okay."

(End of this chapter)