The 2026 Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival series of activities in Zezhou, themed "New Prospects for a Bumper Harvest, Solid Actions to Boost Rural Vitalization," kicked off in Bagong Town on September 19. The event, centered around the theme "Ancient Charm of Zezhou Welcomes a Bumper Year, Harmonious Bagong Celebrates the Harvest," features a range of popular activities such as cultural performances, specialty agricultural product promotions, and agricultural machinery displays to celebrate the harvest season and rally efforts for rural vitalization.
County Party Secretary Chai Zhe, Deputy Secretary Zhang Junhao, County People's Congress Standing Committee Director Zhang Shaohua, County CPPCC Chairman Zhao Hongbin, County Party Committee Propaganda Department Head Qin Zhigang, County Party Committee Office Director Ma Feng, and Standing Deputy County Mayor Li Lin attended the event. The venue buzzed with vibrant flags and a lively atmosphere. The performance opened with the "Majestic Gongs and Drums" show by Beibanqiao Village, followed by cultural troupes from Xibu Village, Yicun, and Bagong Cultural Station, who presented folk dances, fan dances, agricultural tool and product runway shows, and the grand "Shengshi Bayin" music performance. On stage, performances were splendid and joyful, while the audience erupted in continuous applause, with an atmosphere brimming with the joy of a bountiful harvest.
The county leadership then toured the specialty agricultural product exhibition areas of various towns, inspecting products, making detailed inquiries, and learning about the varieties, yields, prices, sales channels, and branding situations of different agricultural products. Chai Zhe emphasized that all townships should leverage their local resource advantages, continue to improve the seedling breeding and development of specialty varieties such as Bagong scallions, promote deep processing of agricultural products, and extend the agricultural industry chain. He also stressed the need to deeply explore local specialty products like tiger-head pillows, mugwort products, and wild jujubes, optimize product packaging design, tell the local farming culture stories, and enhance the Zezhou agricultural product brand.
He further underscored the importance of using the Harvest Festival platform to strengthen the cultivation, processing, and brand promotion of specialty agricultural products, playing the "premium specialty" card, fostering major industries, and continuously broadening income channels for farmers. Afterward, the county leadership visited the agricultural machinery exhibition area to observe modern agricultural equipment and learn about operational performance, purchase subsidies, and field applications. Chai Zhe stressed the need to continuously promote agricultural mechanization and intelligent upgrades, actively introduce advanced machinery suitable for local farmland, and make good use of fully automated integrated production equipment to reduce farming labor intensity. He also called for comprehensive supporting services covering seedling cultivation, field management, and harvest operations, promoting the deep integration of agricultural machinery technology with specialty crop breeding to support large-scale and standardized planting of specialty crops. Additionally, he urged the continuous improvement of agricultural machinery service systems, ensuring regular maintenance and technical guidance, and enhancing overall grain production capacity.
Where to begin? The leadership's directives signify a comprehensive strategy to enhance agricultural modernization and brand building. Why focus on these specific measures? Because they aim to translate local agricultural strengths into sustainable economic growth and improved farmer livelihoods, laying a solid foundation for long-term rural development.