China is the world's major producer of konjac, with its output accounting for 63% of the global total. In China, not only is the application and development of konjac quite diverse, but it also has a long history of cultivation. More than 1,700 years ago, "Ode to the Capital of Shu" recorded: "In its gardens, there are konjac and dogwood, and areas planted with melons and taros." Therefore, the people in Sichuan have rich experience in konjac cultivation and production.

Yanbian County, Panzhihua City, Sichuan Province has a semi-arid monsoon climate in the southern subtropical zone. It is warm in winter, has a high temperature in spring, and is cool in summer and autumn, which is very suitable for the cultivation and growth of konjac. Here, konjac is not only a favorite food among the people but also a treasure for local farmers to get rich. According to statistics, in 2024, the konjac cultivation area in Yanbian County was approximately 25,000 mu, and the output value reached 175 million yuan.

The all-round development of the konjac industry in Yanbian County in terms of cultivation and processing dates back to 2023.
In the past, farmers in Yanbian County generally cultivated Amorphophallus konjac. In recent years, the local government has vigorously promoted Amorphophallus bulbifer var. aurea because its content of glucomannan is higher than that of Amorphophallus konjac and its powder yield is also higher, bringing greater cultivation benefits for farmers. "Build a brand, expand influence, occupy the market, and strengthen the industry." In order to guide farmers to switch to cultivating Amorphophallus bulbifer var. aurea and to better develop and utilize konjac and increase the industrial value, the local government in Yanbian started to attract investment for the comprehensive development and production of konjac.

Having seeds growing in the leaves is one of the characteristics of Amorphophallus bulbifer var. aurea.

In recent years, with the rapid development of healthy diets and technology, the global konjac market scale has been gradually expanding. In 2022, the global konjac market scale reached 590 million US dollars and has maintained a stable annual growth rate of about 11%. It is shown in the "2023-2028 China Konjac Industry Market Demand and Investment Consulting Report" that in 2022, China's konjac market scale was approximately 3.98 billion yuan, with a growth rate as high as 18%. In 2023, China's konjac market grew by 16.26% year-on-year.
Seizing such a business opportunity, Shi Shusen from Nanjing came to Yanbian and decided to invest over 300 million yuan. He planned to develop the konjac industry in 10 years, aiming to complete a konjac cultivation scale of 10,000 mu, develop products, and build konjac agricultural tourism projects. However, in 2023, it happened to be a trough period for the price of konjac roots. The price of konjac dropped from 2.5 yuan per jin in normal times to 0.8 yuan per jin, and many farmers lost confidence.
The first step of Shi Shusen's 10-year plan encountered huge resistance. In order to boost farmers' confidence and demonstrate the underwriting ability of his enterprise, Shi Shusen repurchased all the konjac from the farmers at a price of 2 yuan per jin, with cash on delivery. As a result, the original cultivation area was preserved.

In addition, Shi Shusen also used various forms such as building a 1,000-mu konjac demonstration base and holding konjac cultivation competitions to attract more farmers to join the ranks of konjac cultivation. Zhou Junhong, a newly joined farmer, won the first prize in this year's konjac cultivation competition. Zhou Junhong used to be a truck driver. On the one hand, he was optimistic about the market prospects of konjac. On the other hand, in order to treat his wife's illness, Zhou Junhong invested 500,000 yuan, which he had saved through hard work, in konjac. Similarly, he also had a bad start and encountered the price trough in 2023. Fortunately, with an enterprise like Shi Shusen providing support and recovering a lot of losses, and Zhou Junhong firmly believing that konjac has broad prospects, he still firmly delved into cultivation techniques and continued to explore the boundaries of konjac cultivation.

In Yanbian County, there is also a professional "konjac team" led by Shi Shusen, and Tan Xingfu is one of the technical backbones.
Tan Xingfu has been starting a business in the konjac field for 10 years. He mainly produces and sells an instant konjac powder product for brewing that he has spent years researching and developing. Unlike ordinary konjac fine powder that coagulates into lumps when meeting water, the konjac powder he developed remains a thin and thick liquid after being brewed with water. Although Tan Xingfu is proficient in technology, he has struggled in business. When he met Shi Shusen, a production line specifically for producing instant konjac powder for brewing was launched.

At the same time, Yanbian County is also vigorously developing konjac cultural tourism projects. A number of projects such as konjac bases, konjac production lines, and konjac parks are being implemented and improved. It has also combined the local flavors of Yanbian County with konjac and developed a series of konjac delicacies.
With the joint efforts of the local government, enterprises, scientific research institutions, and farmers, all these have become powerful means to boost the development of the konjac industry.

This year, Yanbian County had a bumper harvest of konjac, and the market situation was excellent. The purchase price per jin reached more than 3 yuan. Coupled with the added value brought by resource development and utilization, konjac has made the "wallets" of local people even fuller. (Text/Photo by the Publicity Department of the Yanbian County Committee)