Hengxian Sweet Corn

Hengxian Sweet Corn

　　Hengxian sweet corn has seen over 20 years of development. Its planting area has now reached 100,000 mu, with an annual output of 100,000 tons, forming an industrial chain that includes 2 sweet corn processing enterprises and 2 dairy and beef cattle farms (raising nearly 1,000 dairy water buffalo and fattening 4,000 beef cattle annually). Recently, to further expand and extend the sweet corn industry chain, Hengxian established a new variety introduction and experimental base for sweet corn in Shijing Village, Xueyi Town. This provides technological support for the industrialization of sweet corn.

　　 The Hengxian New Variety Introduction and Experimental Base for Sweet Corn has partnered with the Guangxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Aiming to develop the county's characteristic economic industries, it has planned and implemented a major project focusing on key production technologies and industrial demonstration for sweet corn. This project will prioritize research areas including the introduction, selection, and promotion of high-quality sweet corn varieties, pest and disease prevention techniques for sweet corn, high-yield rotation cultivation techniques, the cultivation of leading enterprises in sweet corn deep processing, comprehensive utilization of sweet corn by-products and the demonstration of dairy (beef) cattle farming, as well as conducting research on the “sweet corn – dairy (beef) cattle – mushroom” model, among other issues.

　　Hengxian is renowned across Guangxi and even nationwide as the capital of “the most fragrant and the sweetest.” The fragrance comes from jasmine, while the sweetness is from sweet corn. Hengxian sweet corn is rich in nutrition, offering a sweet, crisp, tender, and juicy taste. It can be eaten cooked or raw, classifying it as a fruit-type vegetable — an essential healthy food for humans. Currently, Hengxian sweet corn has become another local specialty of Hengxian following its jasmine, forming a major agricultural pillar industry and making the county the largest sweet corn production and processing base in Southwest China. The production of sweet corn has opened up new paths and highlights for increasing farmers’ income, building new rural areas, and adjusting the agricultural structure, establishing itself as an advantageous industry under Guangxi’s “One County, One Product” initiative.

　　Located in southeastern Guangxi, Hengxian enjoys convenient transportation and a subtropical climate with abundant sunshine, ample rainfall, warm weather, and fertile land — ideal conditions for growing sweet corn. The crop can be planted three to four times a year. In 2013, Hengxian had a sweet corn planting area of 243,000 mu, yielding 240,000 tons of fresh corn cobs and generating an output value of over 500 million yuan. In 2020, the county plans to expand its sweet corn planting area to 300,000 mu, aiming for an annual output of 300,000 tons of fresh corn cobs.

　　Hengxian has 2 sweet corn processing enterprises, which process 80,000 tons of sweet corn annually. Main products include canned sweet corn kernels and sweet corn beverages. These products are exported to cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong. The county has 18 farmer cooperatives dedicated to sweet corn, all adopting standardized pollution-free cultivation techniques. Techniques such as “nutrient cup seedling raising + no-till farming + directional cultivation + soil testing and formulated fertilization + pollution-free pest and disease control” for sweet corn have become increasingly mature. There are 6 large-scale households specializing in feeding cattle with sweet corn stalks, and over 20 individual operators who specialize in chopping and transporting corn stalks. A circular agricultural model of “sweet corn – cattle farming – mushrooms – rice” has taken initial shape, setting an example for the “Beautiful Hengxian · Clean Farmland” initiative.