Taiwan's new herb economy sprouted in Taitung, which is in a great natural environment. By experiencing market reality and the impact of COVID-19, its sense of fashion is gradually fading, but healing, little joys, and pure nature are its new positioning. They are also the promises of protecting the environment of the local brand "The Small Village Far-Far Away."
Far-Far Away Village Cooperative Farm is in the Taiyuan Gorges of Donghe Township, Taitung. If you drive to the Gorges from Luyen Station, even a familiar driver needs more than an hour to arrive, and you even can't find it on Google Maps. The prior visitors always complain that the village is "way too far," so the owner named "The Small Village Far-Far Away" as their product brand. The brand was founded only three years ago and has connected the remote lands with human resources, transforming the primary herb crops into a complete industry chain of ecologically friendly, non-toxic production, and healthy living. It even became an example of a domestic and foreign official organization. All things started with a sad but joyful village restoration in 2010.

Young North Drifter Returns to Hometown and Plants Flowers and Grasses for Restoring the Village
A 33-year-old young man, Mr. Chen Ren-ding, from Shangde Village in Taitung's Donghe Township, was running a skin care production business in Taichung. He had been told that there was 20 hectares of land in his home village that was about to be sold, and the water reserve area would be plowed down to build a temple. Mr. Chen wanted to save the beautiful mountains and forests, so he launched Taitung County Shangde Community Development Association of Donghe Township.
During one and a half years of resistance, he launched an elderly care center and hosted regular home visits, communal meals, and fun activities. He gradually understood why the older generation would sales the lands for survival: an aging population and the decline of industries are the fate of a remote village. In 2012, he returned to his home village with his wife and kids and thought about the opportunity to restore the village with less than one hundred residents.
"When I was a kid, I could see wild ginger flowers, heather, and green mint blooming everywhere here." The child's memories help him find his origin. He discovered that between the 1960s and 1970s, Shangde village prospered by planting herbs and trading with Japan. At its peak, the village had 2,000 residents and 5 essential oil refineries. Therefore, Mr. Chen made up his mind: "That's it!" In 2014, he established "Far-Far Away Village Cooperative Farm" to revitalize the herb industry.
The first product is green mint. It's easy to grow and harvest after 3 months. Mr. Chen has rented 4 hectares of land and invited 4 Inas ("Ina" means "Mum" in Amis) to join the business. He emphasizes that Taiyuan Gorge is a blessed place filled with wild herbs. Far-Far Away Village has been working with farmers to create a primary production chain and has an expected great harvest. However, after two years of operation, the farm was not only losing money but also "couldn't survive on the market."

A Non-Toxic Herb Farm Transforms into a Natural Fragrance Business 
In 2017, Mr. Chen rebuilt the business model and the cost structure.
At the first step, he abandoned the contractual model of only selling raw herb materials and transformed it into a processing herb tea production. He invested in researching and developing the technology for extracting pure dew and essential oils to develop the market for aromatherapy and skin care products. "I was lucky to have been encouraged to apply for the 2-year substitute program by the deputy mayor of Taitung County, Mr. Wang Zhi-hui, who was the branch chief of the Taitung Water Conservation Bureau.
Far-Far Away Village Cooperative Farm applied the Asia demonstration case of the United Nations' Satoyama Initiative in 2019 and was assisted by the Chiayi Industry Innovation and Research Center of MOEA and Taiwan Forestry Institute to focus on the skin care products' formula that are made from certified organic raw materials by France COCERT and devoted themselves to research and development work.
Second, Mr. Chen asked and learned how to operate a social enterprise before deciding to create the village's own brand. He made up his mind to make Shangde Village famous everywhere. Therefore, he applied the 3-year "Multi-Employment Promotion Program (MEPP)," which allowed him to hire three employees and one project manager.
It took three years for the company to identify its position in the market. Although Mr. Chen was open to discussing cooperation, he insisted on not sacrificing the land for profit and made sure that both sides were on the same page. In 2020, he launched the brand "The Small Village Far-Far Away" to practice the task of "communicating to the market and defining the fragrance values of Taitung."

Link 8 Contract Farmers and Empower 6 Sentenced Persons 
So far in 2014, the cooperative farm isn't as lonely as it was. Its herb planting area has expanded from 4 hectares to 10 hectares, and the contract herb farmers have expanded from 1 to 8. However, Mr. Chen has never changed his origination of being kind to the land. "I won't plant exotic herb breeds such as lavender here. The proper land feasts on proper herbs during the whole production process is the method that won't burden the environment," he said.
The brand's business is going fast. The first business of herb tea contributes 30% of the revenue, and the fragrance series has become the main business with 50% of the revenue. Due to the fast business increase and the attention to promoting local employment, the farm has cooperated with Taiyuan Career Training Center to provide herb picking, producing, and packing work to 6 sentenced persons. Now, they are the stable production manpower of the farm.
Furthermore, Mr. Chen made good use of his speech engagements, exhibitions, and visits to meet many industrial experts, such as Mr. Chu Ping, the founder of AVEDA Taiwan, and Mr. Chen Fu-yen, the chairman of travel platform ezTravel.com. By learning from those experts, Mr. Chen has not only opened his horizons but has also constructed his third plan: to collaborate with the local merchants and build a co-prosperity economy.
Starting with revitalizing the resources of local tourism, he has organized herb farm tours and scent workshops since mid-2019. The farm tour requires an entry fee, but it can reduce the purchase of all products. The workshop is to teach the visitors how to make their own essential oils. He also tried to host the mountain camping by not hurting the environment, so the farm only took 10 camps on each hectare.
The long-term blueprint is: no concrete paving, no cutting down of trees, and just step into a mountain living. Mr. Chen expressed that the Multi-Employment Promotion Program (MEPP) has brought 4 working partners who love mountain life. With the new immigrants who yearn for a leisurely Taitung life, Mr. Chen wants to build the Far-Far Away Shangde village into a "healing village that makes people dream of moving in."
The Small Village Far-Far Away (小村遠遠) Official Website

▲The Small Village Far-Far Away is famous for its essential oils and organizes essential oil workshops and customized scent tours.

▲Camping in the Far-Far Away Village Corporative Farm, you can enjoy the greatest gorge view and the secret sea of clouds.

▲Mr. Chen Ren-ding and his family return to his home village to establish Taiwan's Satoyama Village.

▲The main products of The Small Village Far-Far Away is a series of scented care products and herb teas. (Picture provided: Far-Far Away Cooperative Farm)

Case Story: Multi-Employment Promotion Program
Interviewee: Far-Far Away Village Cooperative Farm