Tobacco cultivation lights up Nanlong township's fortunes

A view of a tobacco field in Nanlong township in Kaiyang county. [Photo/Kaiyang Release]

Tobacco cultivated in Nanlong township – in Kaiyang county in Southwest China's Guizhou province – has entered harvest season.

Around 30 farmers are nowadays busy picking tobacco leaves and transporting them to the barn for stalk baking.

From March to September each year, large-scale tobacco growers employ locals to manage and pick the tobacco leaves.

This can provide jobs for 200 people in Nanlong and help each employee increase their annual income by 20,000 yuan ($3,000).

Nanlong's harvested tobacco leaves are processed. [Photo/Kaiyang Release]

Households lacking labor can contract their own land to tobacco growers. In addition to obtaining land contract fees, they can also work in the tobacco plantations to increase their incomes.

This year, around 10 plantations in Nanlong township's Zhongqiao village cultivated 1,300 mu (86.67 hectares) of tobacco in total. This is expected to generate an output value of 4.50 million yuan.

Moving forward, Nanlong township plans to adopt a method of centralized supply of tobacco seedlings, agricultural resources and technologies in developing its tobacco industry.

Plans are also for it to implement a grid management system in the tobacco plantations, to maximize the yield and boost the prosperity of the locals.

Harvested tobacco leaves are made ready for shipping in Nanlong township. [Photo/Kaiyang Release]