During the National Two Sessions in 2026, rural revitalization and private economic transformation have become the focus of heated discussion among delegates.
Yu Ruifen, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and president of Lai Yifen, a snack food company, brought the "Proposal on Improving the Whole Chain of Rural Talent Attraction, Education and Retention with the Dual-wheel Drive of Industrial Empowerment and Talent Cultivation", focusing on the shortage of digital and intelligent talents in rural development.
Yu Ruifen said in an interview with Jiupai Finance that after rural revitalization enters the deep water area, it is difficult to form long-term momentum simply by relying on industry or a single policy. The key lies in building a collaborative mechanism of "industrial empowerment + talent cultivation".
In terms of corporate practice, Lai Yifen has been deeply involved in rural revitalization through industrial assistance, consumption assistance and other methods in recent years. Yu Ruifen found that there is an urgent need for comprehensive talents in management, technology research and development in rural areas.
"However, rural areas have prominent problems such as single channels for talent introduction, insufficient training systems, insufficient support for talent retention, and rigid talent utilization mechanisms; there is an urgent need to build a mechanism for precise talent introduction, systematic cultivation, ecological talent retention, and efficient talent utilization," Yu Ruifen said.
(Yu Ruifen, member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and president of Laiyifen)
The following is part of the conversation between Jiupai Finance and Yu Ruifen.
Jiupai Finance: During this year’s Two Sessions, you focused on putting forward proposals on the construction of a talent system for rural revitalization. What are the core concerns?
Yu Ruifen: At present, rural revitalization has entered a stage of high-quality development. Agriculture is upgrading from traditional production to digital agriculture and smart agriculture. The demand for comprehensive talents is becoming increasingly obvious. However, during the survey, we found that there are still some structural problems in the rural talent system, such as inaccurate talent introduction channels, a fragmented local talent training system, and the grassroots talent retention environment that needs to be improved.
Therefore, I put forward in my proposal that I hope to promote the establishment of a full-chain mechanism for "attracting, educating and retaining" at the national level: first, to establish an accurate talent demand database through digital tools to improve the matching of talent introduction; second, to promote the upgrading of agricultural-related vocational education, such as supporting county secondary vocational colleges to cooperate with enterprises to open rural CEO training classes; third, to enable young talents to truly stay in rural areas by improving education, medical, community and other supporting facilities; fourth, to optimize the talent evaluation mechanism so that the transformation of scientific and technological achievements can better motivate talents.
Jiupai Finance: In corporate practice, how does Lai Yifen participate in rural revitalization through industrial assistance?
Yu Ruifen: The greatest value of enterprises in rural revitalization is to turn agricultural products into marketable commodities through the industrial chain. Our practice in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan is a typical example.
Lai Yifen Charity Foundation has created a local tea industry project, operating through the model of "charity foundation + farmers + cooperatives + omni-channel sales". Specifically, on the one hand, we register companies and brands locally and keep procurement, production and taxation locally as much as possible; on the other hand, we cooperate with local cooperatives, who are responsible for raw material processing, and we sell through online platforms and offline stores.
At present, this project has led more than 1,000 registered farmers to participate in the industrial chain, forming a complete chain from raw material procurement, processing to sales. For enterprises, this is not only a public welfare act, but also helps the local area form a sustainable industrial foundation.
Jiupai Finance: In the process of promoting the upgrading of rural industries, how do you view the combination of “local experts” and corporate management experience?
Yu Ruifen: Agricultural and sideline products in many places actually contain traditional craftsmanship and local experience, which are often in the hands of local “local experts” or intangible cultural inheritors. Their experience is invaluable from a product development and processing perspective.
But on the other hand, many rural industries also face the problem of insufficient brand building, marketing and corporate management capabilities. Therefore, I think it is necessary to introduce corporate mentor talents, such as talents who understand brand, supply chain and marketing.
If we combine the two and combine traditional craftsmanship with modern business systems, we can truly turn "local specialties" into branded products. This is also an important path for upgrading rural industries.
Jiupai Finance: In practice and research, have you come across some typical cases of young people returning to their hometowns to start businesses?
Yu Ruifen: There are actually many such cases. Lai Yifen currently cooperates with nearly 300 suppliers, a considerable number of whom are young people who have returned to their hometowns to start businesses after graduating from university.
For example, the founder of a company we cooperated with in Zhaotong, Yunnan, originally did business elsewhere, but found that the local agricultural product resources were very good, so he built a local factory for deep processing. Now the company's annual sales are close to 100 million yuan, and it has also boosted employment for local farmers and the procurement of raw materials.
This model is of great significance to rural areas – raw materials are local, processing is local, and employment is local. The entire industrial chain remains local, and tax revenue and employment opportunities also increase.
Jiupai Finance: From a business perspective, how to get more workers employed at home?
Yu Ruifen: During my research, I came into contact with children from families in mountainous areas who were disabled due to illness or impoverished due to accidents. Their academic performance is very good, but their family conditions are limited. Many of them have to rely on loans to study in college.
If through policy design and social forces, these students can receive clearer support during their studies, such as scholarships, employment planning and even entrepreneurship support, then they will be more willing to return to their hometowns for development after graduation.
Rural areas actually have a very good natural environment and low living costs. As long as the industrial system and employment opportunities are gradually improved, more and more people will return to their hometowns for employment.
Jiupai Finance: At the industry level, competition in the snack snack market is becoming increasingly fierce. How does Lai Yifen respond?
Yu Ruifen: The snack industry has indeed entered a stage of more competition, and the price war is also more obvious. However, Lai Yifen has always adhered to the mid-to-high-end quality route since its establishment. We also hope to form long-term competitiveness through product quality.
For example, we regularly conduct blind testing of products to compare them with similar products on the market, and continue to iterate based on consumer feedback. At present, among the company's products, the proportion of products with healthy attributes such as low sugar, low fat, and low salt has reached a high level.
In our view, although consumption upgrades will be affected by the macro-environment in stages, the health trend will exist in the long term.
Jiupai Finance: In addition to quality upgrades, does Lai Yifen have any new strategic adjustments?
Yu Ruifen: The company will form a "walking on two legs" structure in the future: on the one hand, it will continue to strengthen the positioning of Lai Yifen brand in terms of quality and healthy food; on the other hand, it will expand the cost-effective market through new brands.
For example, we acquired the community retail brand "Yanggnaji" last year. This brand is positioned as "good quality and low price". It currently has about 300 stores, mainly serving community consumption scenarios.
In addition, the company is also exploring more emotional value and IP-based brand building, hoping to increase consumer stickiness through brand content, store experience and product innovation.
