Chinese farmers create a buzz, and a living, through video-sharing apps
- Posting videos about life on the farm has become popular and is helping some find a way out of poverty
- Clips show increasingly discerning consumers the origins of products and provide a window on rural life
“Do you want a piece?” beekeeper Ma Gongzuo says, looking into the camera of a friend’s smartphone before biting into the dripping comb of amber-coloured honey.
Creating videos has become a popular sales tactic for Chinese farmers: the clips show increasingly discerning consumers the origins of the product and provide a window into rural life that captures audience imagination.
For some it has helped them find a way out of poverty, which the ruling Communist Party hopes to eradicate by 2020.
“Everyone said I was good for nothing when they saw I’d come back,” the 31 year-old says of his return to his village after a failed attempt at running an online clothing business.
“They tell us that we can only get out of poverty if we study and get a job in a city,” he adds.