He turned a vacant lot into an organic vegan paradise
China Vegan Entrepreneurs 02 | Mr. Wu, Veggie Ark Organic Orchard
“Whatever you do, be honest and true to your original intentions, and do things that are beneficial to others.”
Mr. Wu at Veggie Ark Organic Farm in Dali, Yunnan
Meet Mr. Wu
Name: Mr. Wu
Location: Dali, Yunnan
Occupation: Farmer
Project: Veggie Ark organic orchard
Building an organic vegan paradise to solve modern problems
Amid increasing concern about food safety and ecological damage, Mr. Wu decided to start his own organic farm with the vision that everyone who cares about good food can have access to safe, healthy, nutritious and reasonably priced fruit. To get started, he found a 500 mu parcel of uncultivated land beside the Jinsha River, signed a lease, and began reclaiming the land for farming. He planted crops such as oranges, coffee, cabbage, moringa, passion fruit and bananas, and adhered to natural and organic agricultural techniques that enrich the land and are harmonious with local wild species.
Breaking ground
Mr. Wu started developing the land in 2011. The first problem he encountered was the water source. Dali has a hot, dry valley climate, and Mr. Wu’s fruit trees were planted on steep slopes. He realized that ensuring a sufficient and sustainable water source would be a challenge in this location. He needed a stable solution. In the end, instead of connecting to water mains, he decided to manually dig two reservoirs and establish a pump system to fill them with water from the Jinsha River. Once this irrigation system was complete, he was ready to start planting crops!
Respect the ecosystem and live in harmony with nature
The first crops Mr. Wu planted were coffee, moringa, and olives. Later, he began planting bananas, oranges, and passion fruit. The land is never cleared or weeded - everything is allowed to grow naturally. Mr. Wu irrigates the crops with enzyme-enriched river water and natural fertilizer supplemented with cattle and sheep manure from local farmers. He does not pursue high yields; instead he focuses on restoring the ecosystem and letting the plants grow, rest, and bear fruit at their own pace.
No water? No problem.
Although he encountered a roadblock at first with the dry land, Mr. Wu’s reservoir solution has worked well. In addition to ensuring reliable irrigation for the fruit trees without consuming municipal water resources, the reservoirs also provide a habitat for geese. To enrich the water with more nutrition for his plants, Mr. Wu adds homemade organic enzymes made from fermented fruits and vegetables.
The best advertisement: happy customers
To promote Veggie Ark, Mr. Wu established a WeChat official account and converted part of the farm into a homestay, cafe, and event space that regularly hosts workshops, farmers’ markets, and other events (including the China Vegan Society’s launch ceremony!). They establish relationships with wholesale agents around the country to promote and sell their products. Much of their traffic also comes from word-of-mouth recommendation. Many customers have reported that they can’t get enough of Veggie Ark's sweet organic oranges!
Rising demand for healthy food
At present, Veggie Ark’s annual production of organic oranges is stable and sales are meeting expectations. In recent years, Mr. Wu has observed that public demand and support for high-quality fruits is rising, and consumers are paying more attention to food safety and health. If he could go back and change anything about the process of establishing his farm, Mr. Wu says he wouldn’t: "everything happens exactly as it should."
THE RESULTS
In 2021, Veggie Ark produced 300 tons of organic oranges
They have already connected with over 200 wholesale distributors, and their oranges are now sold all over the country
In July 2021, Veggie Ark was also announced as one of the 50 Best Small Businesses of the UN’s “Good Food for All” competition, held in conjunction with the UN Food Systems Summit
Check out Veggie Ark
To learn more about Veggie Ark, scan the QR code to follow their official WeChat account.
The China Vegan Society’s China Vegan Entrepreneurs series showcases vegan startups and advocacy projects from around China to give the world an on-the-ground perspective of China’s vegan ecosystem. None of the content in this series is sponsored or compensated in any way.