A farmer at Guquan village in Mengyin county, Linyi, Shandong province sorts peaches. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Guquan village in Mengyin county, Linyi, Shandong province has undergone a remarkable transformation from a once economically poor community to a model of prosperity thanks to the local peach industry.

Due to the mountainous landscape that hindered the village's development, the village once suffered from poverty. Most young people left for cities to make a living. This situation started to change when Liu Yuanhua was selected to work as the Party secretary of the village in 2019.

"Villagers in Guquan have the tradition of planting peaches, so we focus on deeply developing the peach industry," said Liu.

The village has been cooperating with companies and colleges to develop new peach varieties to meet various consumer demands. To date, the village has develop more than 30 varieties of peach.

Peaches grown in the village have been sold to overseas markets including Southeast Asian countries.

Thanks to the peach industry, the collective economy of the village has surged to 2 million yuan ($279,513) in two years.

The lives of the 2,350 residents in the village have also improved, with elderly residents benefiting from accident insurance provided by the village and all villagers receiving compensation for their annual medical expenses.

A farmer at Guquan village in Mengyin county, Linyi, Shandong province picks peaches. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Farmers sort peaches at a production line built by an agricultural company at Guquan village in Mengyin county, Linyi, Shandong. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]