By Liu Jiawen, compiled and reported
As one of the 12 major Hakka village festivals, the Miaoli Gongguan Hakka Fucai Culture Festival runs from today until January 15 (Sunday) at the Tungflower Park in Tongluo Township. During the event period, every Saturday and Sunday (except for the election voting day on the 14th), the public can sign up on-site to experience DIY fucai squeezing, with a daily limit of 800 participants. The event also offers 2,000 free servings of fucai soup for tasting, as well as lei tea experiences, local specialty product exhibitions, and performances by cultural and art groups. The highlight will take place on the afternoon of the 15th, featuring a performance of the harvest opera “The Eight Immortals Cross the Sea” by the Rongxing Hakka Tea-Picking Opera Troupe.
The Miaoli Gongguan Hakka Fucai Culture Festival runs from today until January 15 (Sunday) at Tungflower Park in Tongluo Township. Visitors can sign up on-site to experience DIY fucai squeezing and take home their own hand-pickled fucai. (Photo provided by Miaoli County Government International Cultural and Tourism Bureau)
To welcome the Year of the Dragon, this year’s fucai culture festival is themed “Celebrating a Bumper Harvest with Blessings.” In addition, the Hakka Courtyard within Tungflower Park showcases the fucai-making process, which includes three stages: planting fucai, pickling fucai, and sharing fucai. It also displays various types of fucai products such as mustard greens, pickled vegetables, fucai, and dried mustard greens, as well as vintage photos by renowned photographer Xie Qiz. These elements allow visitors to immerse themselves in the rich Hakka culture.
The event site also features lei tea experiences, local specialty product exhibitions, and performances by cultural and art groups. (Photo provided by Miaoli County Government International Cultural and Tourism Bureau)
Gongguan Township in Miaoli County cultivates mustard greens on approximately 30 hectares of land, with an annual output of about 2.5 million kilograms, making it the largest fucai production area among Hakka villages nationwide and earning it the title “Hometown of Fucai.” Last year’s first National Hakka Fucai Culture Festival set a Guinness World Record for “A Thousand People Stepping on Pickled Vegetables.” Not only were the fucai products hugely popular, but the event also successfully highlighted the diverse value of fucai. This year’s event carries on that spirit, welcoming visitors from all over to Miaoli to experience Hakka lifestyle and culture.