Taiwan: Organic farming helps firm through furlough crisis

Source: focustaiwan.tw
By S.C. Chang

OrganicPortal NewsRoom

Tyi Sheng Co., Ltd. was one of the Taiwanese companies impacted by the 2008 financial crisis, but its chairman, Chang Yu-ho, did not want to see his employees laid off because of poor business. So he did something unusual with the aim of helping them, despite having put them on forced unpaid leave: He rented a farm on which they could grow organic vegetables.

Some of the Tyi Sheng Co. employees, who found themselves in the position of being "accidental farmers," chose not to go back to their previous jobs even after the crisis was over. The flexible and innovative way in which a high-tech industry company helped its furloughed employees after putting them in financial difficulties was reported by the United Daily News as follows:

Tyi Sheng specialized in providing heavy machinery services to high-tech companies in the Hsinchu Science Park, the hub of Taiwan's high-tech industry and home to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and other big names. When the financial crisis hit three years ago, Tyi Sheng's business plummeted. Chang then rented a 15,000-ping plot of land (one ping equals 3.3 square meters) and encouraged his furloughed employees to grow vegetables.

Some of the revenue from the produce was given to the "new farmers" as their salaries, and the project also turned out to be a new revenue source for the company. The company's machinery-service business has since returned to normal, but its "furlough farm" continues to generate an income of some NT$300,000 per month, and has received certification as an "organic farm."

Ten of the employees who worked on the farm said they will stay there instead of returning to their old jobs. One sunny day, 48-year-old Chang worked with his employees on the farm, weeding, picking worms from vegetable leaves, chatting and laughing. Few outsiders would have thought that Chang, sporting rain boots, is a multi-millionaire whose company offers cranes and other machinery services to many major semiconductor, LED and wafer manufacturers in Hsinchu.

His parents were farmers who taught him never to till the land because it was a low-income, low-prestige job. Rather, he was told, he should seek his future outside of rural areas. So, at age 28, Chang started his business as leader of a three- person team working for the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI). Within 12 years, Chang's business had expanded into a 300-strong company serving not just Hsinchu-area high-tech companies, but also those in China and Russia.

Chang, a vegetarian, began growing his own vegetables seven years ago on a lot he rented in Chutung, Hsinchu County. He did so just to satisfy his own personal wish to eat "self-grown" vegetables on the grounds that they should be cleaner and healthier than supermarket supplies.

The 2008 global financial crisis, which prompted him to reduce his staff by 80 percent, gave him an opportunity to try out his idea of allowing his employees on unpaid leave to grow vegetables. "Probably, heaven showed us some favor -- our harvests that year were exceptionally good and the income just made up for the employees' salaries," Chang said.

Just half a year later, business was back and most of the "farming" employees returned to the office to continue their jobs. Lin Shih-min and Tseng Neng-yen were among those who chose not to resume their city employment but to stay as farmers. Both of them said they used to be in poor health and said that the new way of life -- tilling the land and being vegetarians -- improved their health.

"I'm much happier now that I do not have to hurry to and from the office, and I feel much more relaxed," Lin said. The chairman plans to expand the "Tyi Sheng Organic Farm" to a total of 55,000 pings, by renting another 40,000 pings. He said he will sell the produce 20 percent lower than market prices so that more people will be able to enjoy healthy produce from his farm. None were happier than his parents, who said with broad smiles that "after being away for so many years, he's coming back to the land."

Tip: OrganicPortal China - Organic Agriculture

OrganicPortal NewsRoom

07.01.2012

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