Spicy success in Gaotai

Farmers take advantage of the good weather to dry red chili peppers in Mingshui village, Nanhua town, Gaotai county, Zhangye, on Aug 28, 2024. [Photo provided to gogansu.com]

On Aug 28, 2024, as high-speed trains whizzed along the Lanzhou-Xinjiang railway line in Nanhua town, Gaotai county, Zhangye, Gansu province, local farmers seized the opportunity of clear weather to sun-dry red chili peppers in the drying fields of Mingshui village.

In recent days, the 10,200 mu (680 hectares) of red chili peppers planted in Nanhua town have entered the harvesting season. The fields are now bustling with farmers busy picking, transporting, and drying their peppers.

Gaotai county, renowned as the "Hometown of Chili Peppers," boasts a 300-year history of chili cultivation. The locally grown peppers are known for their thick, oily flesh, vibrant red color, uniform elongated shape, and pure, intense spiciness.

This year, the county has adopted a "company + cooperative + base + farmer" development model to promote "contract chili pepper" cultivation. The contract-based open-field chili pepper industry now covers over 40,000 mu (2,667 hectares). The entire industry chain is expected to generate a value of 450 million yuan ($69 million).

Chili pepper cultivation has become a flagship agricultural product in the region, significantly boosting agricultural efficiency and farmers' incomes. This success story exemplifies how traditional farming practices can be modernized to create sustainable economic growth in rural areas.