Chapter 286 - 149: Unexpected Harvest (Medium)

Chapter 286: Chapter 149: Unexpected Harvest (Medium)

Of course, some well-managed soybean crops could yield 180 kilograms or more.

But that still wasn’t very profitable.

This just goes to show how difficult it is to persuade farmers or agricultural companies to invest in desert soilization projects.

The main issue is that agriculture isn’t very profitable. A large initial investment extends the break-even period, and you could end up losing everything.

Unless there are government subsidies, or the cost of desert soilization technology drops to around a thousand yuan, the technology will be difficult to popularize anytime soon.

Professor Ke, knowing this, had specifically reminded Jiang Miao to be mindful of his investment scale to avoid suffering heavy losses.

"Thank you for the reminder, Professor Ke. Our project does indeed involve planting on desert land, but our approach is different from the Yu Zhou Jiaotong University team. We’re starting with the seeds themselves, breeding crops that can adapt to deserts and saline-alkali soils."

Hearing Jiang Miao’s explanation, Professor Ke’s eyes widened in surprise. "It seems Professor Jiang has already achieved some results. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be investing so heavily."

"We have indeed. We’ve conducted small-scale planting trials in artificially simulated saline-alkali and sandy soils and obtained promising data."

Although he wasn’t clear on the specifics of Hailufeng Company’s results, Professor Ke still offered his best wishes. "In that case, I wish you and Hailufeng Company a resounding success, Professor Jiang."

"Haha, thank you."

As they chatted, Professor Zhang suddenly interjected.

"Professor Jiang, the College of Fisheries has a project, and I was wondering if Hailufeng Company might be interested."

Jiang Miao smiled. "Please, go ahead, Professor Zhang."

Professor Zhang quickly explained, "Here’s the situation. Last year, a professor from our college was leading a few students in researching the farming of the Yangtze Hua Fish. They discovered that after using your company’s No. 4 Egyptian Catfish feed, the fish’s growth rate increased significantly. After about four months, they reached a length of around 50 centimeters and a weight of about 2 kilograms."

"Oh? The Yangtze Hua Fish? You mean the Yangtze Giant Catfish, a member of the catfish family, correct?" Jiang Miao instantly recalled the relevant information.

"That’s correct. The Giant Catfish," Professor Zhang said with a smiling nod.

Jiang Miao considered this for a moment. "The No. 4 feed was designed for the Egyptian Catfish. Since the Giant Catfish is also in the catfish family, their genetic similarity is quite high. It stands to reason the feed would have an effect."

"The professor and his students discovered this, but they don’t understand the specific mechanism. He heard you were coming today, Professor Jiang, and asked me to talk to you about a potential collaboration with Hailufeng Company."

"Of course. Let’s meet tonight."

"Excellent. I’ll go inform him right away."

That evening, after having dinner with the university leadership, Jiang Miao went to the College of Fisheries’ administration building to meet with the professor.

Present were Dean Zhang, who had arranged the meeting; Professor Li, who was leading the research project; and his three students.

Professor Li’s three students gazed at Jiang Miao with surprise and admiration. If the dean and their professor hadn’t been there, they would have rushed to ask for his autograph and a photo.

After they took their seats, one of the male students took the initiative to pour tea for everyone.

Jiang Miao got straight to the point. "Professor Li, I took some time this afternoon to look over your project. It definitely has significant research value."

"To have it be recognized by you, Professor Jiang, means our research hasn’t been in vain." Professor Li’s face lit up with joy.

The two parties discussed the current state of the Giant Catfish research.

Although wild Giant Catfish still existed, the large specimens had all but vanished.

The Giant Catfish is characterized by its two barbels and a blue-green body. Specimens from murkier waters tend to be grayish-yellow with gray spots. It’s a large fish, with the biggest individuals capable of growing to nearly two meters long and weighing up to 50 kilograms.

That’s right—nearly two meters long and 50 kilograms.

This was also why, before fishing bans were established, the large Giant Catfish in the Yangtze River Basin were virtually wiped out.

Currently, farmed Giant Catfish can grow to 40–50 centimeters long and weigh 1.5–2 kilograms over a roughly two-year cycle, provided they are in a good farming environment with proper feed.

This alone showed the immense potential of the Giant Catfish.

While the Egyptian Catfish could be farmed in the Yangtze River Basin, it was, after all, an invasive species. Furthermore, the basin was prone to freezing temperatures, which could kill the Egyptian Catfish or halt their growth.

The native Giant Catfish, however, was well-adapted to the climate of the Yangtze River Basin.

If the Giant Catfish’s growth rate could be brought up to the level of the Egyptian Catfish, and its farming costs made comparable, it could become the cornerstone of the aquaculture industry in the Yangtze River Basin.

And this was entirely achievable.

The Giant Catfish already possessed the genes for enormous size. All that was needed was to identify the genetic target for stimulating growth and use a specialized feed to make them grow rapidly.

Jiang Miao, Professor Li, and the others talked for over two hours.

In the end, Jiang Miao made his decision. Hailufeng Company would invest 50 million yuan in their project team for research into the rapid growth of the Giant Catfish, with the funds to be disbursed in installments over five years.

The research results would be jointly owned by Hailufeng Company, Lion Mountain Agricultural University, and Professor Li’s team. Should the patent generate any income, the profits would be split 66% for Hailufeng Company, 15% for the university, and 19% for Professor Li’s team.

Jiang Miao didn’t plan to get personally involved in this research.

’After all, Hailufeng Company already has its Egyptian Catfish farming technology. This Giant Catfish project involves some technical overlap.’

’So, while the project is worth investing in, I won’t personally take the lead. I don’t want to suddenly roll out a low-cost, high-yield Giant Catfish that would disrupt Hailufeng Company’s own Egyptian Catfish industry. At the very least, this project isn’t suitable for large-scale promotion in the short term.’

Professor Li’s team wasn’t thinking that far ahead. They were just thrilled that they had struck it rich. Even with supervisors from Hailufeng Company overseeing the project, they could still find legitimate ways to reap substantial benefits.

Besides, if their research was successful, there would be patent royalties to collect.

The next morning, Jiang Miao said goodbye to Shuya. Five security guards then escorted her to the high-speed train back to Shanmei.

Jiang Miao, meanwhile, took a high-speed train to the Monan Branch.