Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

"After the Ministry of Agriculture discovered the problem, it enacted new regulations for state-owned farms in an attempt to change the situation. Other state-owned farms have implemented these regulations well, with significant increases in grain production and profits. However, some of the remaining state-owned farms are relatively specialized. Although the Ministry of Agriculture has sent personnel several times to make adjustments, the results have been minimal on these older state-owned farms. These state-owned farms are too specialized, making them difficult for us to manage."

Li Shaocheng also had a headache.

Wei Hongjun understood Li Shaocheng's concerns.

Many of these state-owned farms were originally military farms. The disabled veterans who worked there came from various military units, and who knows who was behind them? Although these state-owned farms were separated from the military and became state-owned farms under the Ministry of Agriculture, they nonetheless have a unique history, with intricate ties to the military. This is especially true of the state-owned farms established by disabled veterans in Northeast China, which were backed by the former Fourth Field Army and the Northeast Military Region.

The relationships are very complicated.

If you make the slightest move, the military might call you. If you don't handle it well, you could easily be attacked and mistreated for being a disabled soldier.

Such a crime is no small matter. Wei Hongjun was furious.

These state-owned farms are using disabled soldiers as shields. However, this issue must be addressed and cannot be delayed. The longer it is delayed, the more difficult it will be to resolve.

Li Shaocheng is a very capable cadre. He's particularly adept at identifying problems and finding solutions. He's also quite resourceful. Consider the ten new management measures for state farms formulated by the Ministry of Agriculture. Each one addresses a problem facing state farms. Even if Wei Hongjun and Deng Zhihui had worked together on a state farm management plan, it wouldn't have been as effective. The only problem is that Li Shaocheng isn't decisive enough, and he's not forceful enough when implementing his work.

Faced with obstacles at work, they lack the courage to forge ahead. Every cadre has their strengths and weaknesses. Li Shaocheng's strengths are his genuine ability and deep familiarity with rural work. He handles rural issues promptly and in a manner consistent with the facts. However, his weaknesses are also quite obvious: he lacks the fortitude to tackle tough battles. In this respect, he is not as decisive as Chen Tao, currently Deputy Secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee and responsible for rural affairs in Guangdong.

Now that Wei Hongjun had discovered the problem, he couldn't just let it slide. "There's nothing much to say about this issue; it must be resolved. My suggestion is that all disabled veterans on state farms leave the farms. Give them homesteads, help them build houses, and let them form their own village. Their salaries and benefits, if they're cadres, should be treated as cadres, and the government will be responsible for paying them in the future. Don't assign them to state farms, as this will allow some to use this as an excuse to defy the Ministry of Agriculture's orders. What are your opinions, comrades?"

Wei Hongjun also didn't want to have any conflicts with these disabled soldiers from the Northeast Army.

It was because Wei Hongjun was also a military veteran. These disabled soldiers were revolutionary heroes, and the state should have supported them. Furthermore, many of these disabled soldiers might have come from Wei Hongjun's old unit.

They should be well accommodated.

So Wei Hongjun planned to directly remove the firewood from the source. He would transfer these disabled soldiers from the state-owned farms and establish a new village. There were still many places in Northeast China where new villages could be established.

Then, we would guarantee the treatment of these disabled soldiers separately. Once they left the state farms, it would be much easier to deal with those disobedient state farm cadres. Previously, there were many disabled soldiers, so it was more difficult to deal with them.

After the disabled soldiers were removed, these state-owned farms were no different from other state-owned farms. Some state-owned farm cadres wanted to show off their revolutionary seniority and regard themselves as heroes, but Wei Hongjun would not tolerate them.

They are veterans and revolutionary heroes, but the country has not treated them unfairly.

They've been given the jobs they deserve, and the treatment they deserve. If they're still dissatisfied and demand more from the state, they're not true revolutionaries. When it comes time to deal with them, Wei Hongjun will show no mercy.

"I support it." Deng Zhihui nodded.

He said: "Since state-owned farms have received state investment and are state-controlled farms, they must bear more important responsibilities than rural cooperatives. If they cannot complete such tasks, then what is the need for us to establish state-owned farms? Therefore, state-owned farms must be readjusted to allow them to take advantage of the advantages of mechanized farms."

"I agree too."

Tan Zhenlin said, "If the state farm model doesn't change, they'll only earn about 40 yuan a month. Then what will the officers and soldiers of the Agricultural Reclamation Corps, who are reclaiming wasteland in the Great Northern Wilderness, Jiangxinpo, Xinjiang, Suiyuan, and Hainan, think of this? State farms can't even complete their national missions, yet they're still enjoying such high salaries. Not only will the surrounding rural areas be dissatisfied, but everyone in our agricultural reclamation corps will be unhappy too."

Tan Zhenlin was very surprised.

I didn’t expect the wages of workers on state-owned farms to be so high.

The current agricultural reclamation troops are reclaiming wasteland in harsh environments. We all come from revolutionary troops, so why are the state-owned farms so well-paid?

Seeing everyone's support, Wei Hongjun said, "Comrade Shaocheng, when you encounter difficulties in your work, you must not retreat or avoid them."

"Yes."

"Comrade Lai Ruoyu, cooperate with Comrade Shaocheng and implement the Ministry of Agriculture's policies on these unchanged state-owned farms as quickly as possible. If anyone obstructs or disobeys orders, please report to me. I will approve the transfer of these cadres. If they still fail to comply with orders, they can be dealt with within the Party and by the organization. If any unit calls you while you are handling cadres, please transfer the call to me. I will speak to them."

"Yes."

"Our state-owned farms, in addition to producing state grain and commercial grain, also have to provide the country with a certain amount of livestock, both large and small, and store some grain. Therefore, the management of state-owned farms is of paramount importance. The Ministry of Agriculture must strengthen its management of state-owned farms, particularly their financial management."

946 Rural Future

"You handled the pig problem very well."

Wei Hongjun was very angry about the Ministry of Agriculture's issues with state-owned farms, but the pig issue was handled very well.

从1953年开始，生猪数量迅速恢复。1953年年未和1954年年初供应市场的猪肉数量多了，1954年3月份的时候生猪数量降到了8600万头左右。不过到了8月份,也就是刚刚得到的数据是,现在的生猪数量是1.2亿头左右，比年初增加了4000万头。是新中国成立以来生猪数量最多的时候。

It can be said that the recovery speed of pig population is very fast.

The number of pigs slaughtered will increase by the end of this year and the beginning of next year.

"Comrades in the Foreign Trade Department say that demand for pork in the Soviet Union and Eastern European countries is still increasing. Their economies are developing rapidly, and demand for pork has skyrocketed. The current pork shortage in their markets has reached over 70 tons, meaning a shortage of nearly 1500 million pigs. The Ministry of Foreign Trade is currently in consultation with the Soviet Union and Eastern European countries to see if we can further increase exports of live pigs, as well as pork products like canned pork and sausages."

China currently exports approximately 26 tons of pork, but the Soviet and Eastern European markets are facing a pork shortage exceeding 70 tons. This is partly due to the Soviet Union's relaxation of its control over Eastern Europe, which resulted in significant economic development in these countries.

The demand for pork was high in the market, and the same was true in the Soviet Union.

After Khrushchev came to power, he began to cut some military projects and reduce military spending. After the outbreak of the Korean War, Soviet military spending had been rising. But after the Korean War ended, Khrushchev also began to reduce military spending.

The excess money began to flow into other industrial sectors.

The Soviet economy suddenly looked much better, which boosted demand in the Soviet market.

"Also, according to the Ministry of Foreign Trade, the demand for pork in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe is still growing. They believe that if China exports 2000 million pigs, the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe will be able to consume them all. So, although our pig population has been growing over the past two years, we can't be complacent."

Historically, the Chairman wanted to provide more than 3000 million live pigs to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.

Unfortunately, rural policies have never been stable, so the number of pigs has also fluctuated.

"Vice Premier Wei, I need to report to you on the pig issue."

"Go ahead."

Li Shaocheng said: "There are two issues that need to be decided. One is about pig manure. In the absence of chemical fertilizers, pig manure is the best chemical fertilizer.

Fertilizer. At present, many of the troops under our various military regions mainly raise pigs in their companies. According to our statistics, the army has quite a number of pigs, and some companies even raise 20 to 30 pigs. But although the companies below have their own arable land, the amount of arable land is not much. They simply do not need so much pig manure. Although some companies raise pigs, they have no arable land at all. Including some public security forces, they also raise pigs, and they have the same problem.

All that pig manure is wasted.”

As the saying goes, a good harvest depends on good fertilizer.

We are talking about animal feces such as pig manure, cow manure and even chicken manure.

For example, a single pig can produce 100 dan of manure per year, containing -% pure nitrogen. The amount of nitrogen absorbed by crops is equivalent to the amount of pure ammonium in jin of ammonium sulfate. The manure from a single pig in a year can be applied to two or three mu of land, increasing yields by over jin per mu.

It can be said that pigs are small fertilizer factories.

"you mean?"

"See if you can connect the cooperative with the local military. The cooperative will exchange some agricultural and sideline products for the army's pig manure. The manure from 100 pigs can fertilize 200 to 300 mu of farmland. Some smaller cooperatives only have a few hundred to 1,000 mu of farmland. This animal manure can not only increase grain production but also effectively improve the soil. It would be a shame to waste the military's pig manure."

Wei Hongjun looked at Deng Zhihui.

Deng Zhihui nodded.

He said, "When I was in the Central South Military Region, all the troops under it launched production campaigns. However, later on, most of the army's arable land was either transferred to state-owned farms or to local governments. Now the army doesn't have much arable land. However, the army does raise a lot of pigs."

"I'll discuss this with the Military Commission. To complete the cooperation between the local army and the cooperative, we need our Rural Work Department and the Military Commission to jointly issue documents."

In this day and age, feces are a good thing.

You won't see animal feces on the road because people have picked them up. Human and animal feces are currently the most important fertilizers in many places and should not be wasted.

"The second is about the swine fever vaccine."

"We have developed a vaccine for swine fever?"

Wei Hongjun was very interested in this matter. Li Shaocheng nodded and said, "Shanghai has already developed a vaccine for swine fever. Currently, the more common vaccines, such as swine fever, swine erysipelas, and swine plague, are all effective."

"This is a good thing."

The biggest fear in pig farming is swine fever.

If vaccination can solve the problem, it will greatly support the increase in the number of pigs. In this way, not only can every household raise pigs, but also some larger pig farms can be established.

"But the vaccine factory in Shanghai is short on funds. They need steel to expand their factory and a large number of freezers. Furthermore, they need refrigeration equipment to transport the vaccine to various locations. However, with the current transportation conditions in my country, this is not easy."

Wei Hongjun has a headache.

Although we have achieved a technological breakthrough, there are still a lot of problems when we want to promote the technology.

Storage and transportation are big problems.

Given China's current situation, these problems simply cannot be solved quickly. Even transportation between cities is poor, let alone the towns and villages below. Furthermore, not only is China's transportation situation poor, but there is also a lack of transportation options.

Deng Zhihui, who was standing next to him, asked, "How much does the vaccine cost?"

"The cost is a little over one cent, less than two cents. But if it's manufactured in Shanghai and then shipped to other regions, the cost would be over ten cents. Furthermore, my country currently lacks refrigerated transportation capacity, so many vaccines spoil if they're shipped from Shanghai to rural areas. Under current conditions, even if Shanghai produced enough swine fever vaccine, it would only be available in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui. Provinces further afield wouldn't have access to it at all."

"What do you mean?"

"Vice Premier Wei, the best solution now is to invest and build more vaccine factories across the country to produce swine fever vaccines. Only in this way can we solve the problems of vaccine storage and transportation and truly use the vaccine in pig farming."

“How much does it cost?”

"Even if we set up five vaccine factories, the cost of building buildings, equipment, and personnel would be no less than 60 million."

Wei Hongjun couldn't help scratching his head.

Everything needs to develop.

But there's no money. Conditions in New China are much better now than they were in the past, but there's still a severe shortage of money. Why was there such strict control in the past? Because if there wasn't strict control, money couldn't be centralized.

If money cannot be concentrated, industrial investment cannot be completed.

Wei Hongjun is not a god.

Where did they get all that money? This past year alone, the central government raised the funds by cutting salaries for Party members, cadres, and the military to fund Soviet aid projects. Then, in August, they launched the atomic bomb project, and then they had to import machinery and equipment from Western countries. Money was pouring in, but incomes couldn't possibly have increased so quickly.

Sixty million, not six hundred thousand.

At this time, Tan Zhenlin next to him said: "If our agricultural reclamation is willing to contribute 10 to 20 million, can the vaccine factory be built in our Beidahuang?"

"Does Nongken have money?"

"We can squeeze in some space. I think we could build a small-scale vaccine factory. Beidahuang already has 18 pigs. The Beidahuang Reclamation Corps' goal is to increase that number to around 1960 by 50, with an annual output of 20. But our biggest concern is swine fever. If a vaccine factory could be built there, it would be a boon for Beidahuang's pig business."

To support the development of agricultural reclamation, the central government did not require the agricultural reclamation to pay public grain, commercial grain, or profits in its early stages, giving them a few years to develop.

Beidahuang was exempted from central government subsidies until the end of the First Five-Year Plan in 1956. Starting in 1957, Beidahuang was required to provide public grain and commercial grain to the state, as well as hand over a portion of its profits.

The situation was similar for other agricultural reclamation corps. Therefore, Tan Zhenlin had some serious funding.

Tan Zhenlin wasn't just considering the Qiaopai industry in Beidahuang; he was also considering the pig farming industry in Northeast China. Northeast China, with its many mountains and abundant resources, is ideal for pig farming. It's possible to raise pigs at the beginning of the year and sell them at the end.

This way, many places need this vaccine.

Beidahuang's own vaccine factory not only solves its own pig farming problem, but also allows it to sell vaccines to other parts of Northeast China, increasing profits for Beidahuang. Furthermore, it can leverage Beidahuang's animal husbandry to train a group of veterinary professionals.

"Comrade Tan Zhenlin, you can go and do this yourself. If your Ministry of Agriculture and Reclamation has the ability to build a vaccine factory, I will approve it."

The current situation is that the whole society needs to be mobilized.

Since the Ministry of Agriculture and Reclamation has the ability to invest in a vaccine factory, Wei Hongjun naturally supports it. Even if the Ministry of Agriculture and Reclamation invests in building universities, research labs, and various commercial companies, Wei Hongjun would support it. The central government established the Ministry of Agriculture and Reclamation precisely to make money for it.

"it is good."