Yuxi, Yunnan: “Green Income Protection”

Since the launch of the pilot project of Green Organic Agricultural Product Income Insurance (hereinafter referred to as “Green Income Insurance”) in Yuxi City, Yunnan Province, more than 11800 acres of green vegetables have been standardized and planted in the Xingyun Lake basin of Jiangchuan District and Qilu Lake basin of Tonghai County. As a result, 1104 households have participated in the “Green Income Insurance” program, which effectively promotes the stable income and income increase of local farmers while improving the quality of the regional ecological environment, Promote the development of local agriculture and the protection of lakes to achieve a win-win situation.

The reporter learned that the “Green Income Insurance” insurance amount is based on the standard of 4000 yuan per acre per crop. If the vegetable income per acre is less than 4000 yuan, the insurance company will compensate for the difference, allowing vegetable farmers to lock in a minimum income guarantee of 4000 yuan per acre. The premium per acre is 480 yuan, which is implemented based on 80% provincial financial subsidies and 20% self payment by insured farmers and enterprises. Financial funds are used to guide vegetable planting entities to purchase income insurance, share the risk of natural disasters and market price fluctuations, ensure the basic income of vegetable farmers, and ensure the upgrading of local industries to “go green”.

Based on the actual situation of the Xingyun Lake and Qilu Lake basins, Yuxi City has developed a supply chain financial guarantee system with the goal of ensuring the income of vegetable farmers, which includes “government+insurance+banks+core enterprises+planting entities”. At the same time, banks provide financing to reduce the initial investment costs of vegetable farmers and solve the financial difficulties of vegetable planting entities. Since the implementation of the “Green Income Insurance” pilot project in Jiangchuan District, Postal Savings Bank Jiangchuan Branch has actively responded to the supply chain guarantee model and, in response to the “small, scattered, and fast” financial needs of farmers, has processed online credit loans for vegetable farmers in the insurance pilot area. As of the end of June 2023, a total of 150 loans have been processed for eligible vegetable farmers, with an amount of 7.5 million yuan.

With government guidance, insurance coverage, and bank assistance, introducing core enterprises has become the key to increasing the income of vegetable farmers. Tonghai County has introduced the local leading agricultural product enterprise Tonghai Plateau Agricultural Products Co., Ltd. to play a pivotal role in connecting the consumer market and planting bases, so as to fully integrate market demand with vegetable production. After purchasing the “Green Income Insurance” policy, Tonghai Plateau Agricultural Products Co., Ltd. actively applies its technological advantages to guide vegetable farmers in standardized production, continuously improves its planting level, and produces green and organic vegetable products that meet market demand. At the same time, the company implements a unified purchase and sales policy for vegetable farmers, which not only reduces the burden on them in the sales process, but also allows them to fully focus on green product cultivation, achieving group production and cluster development for vegetable farmers. In addition, in order to explore and solve the contradiction between lake protection and agricultural production, the company has also cultivated 30 acres of experimental fields along the Qilu Lake, developed green products such as “three zero” vegetables, and achieved a win-win situation between agricultural development and environmental protection around the lake by introducing new technologies and models. In 2022, the application of fertilizers and pesticides in the Xingyun Lake and Qilu Lake basins decreased by 2.46% and 1.02% respectively year-on-year.

The company sends the ‘temperature’ of ‘green income protection’ to vegetable farmers who suffer losses through on-site compensation and cash settlement. In addition, the implementation of the ‘green income protection’ pilot not only achieves a win-win situation between local environmental protection and people’s income increase, but also effectively stimulates local finance’s support for various links in the industrial chain. “said Zeng Guochang, General Manager of China Ping An Property and Casualty Insurance Yuxi Central Branch.