When I entered DuaHo-Rice in Dayuan District, Taoyuan City, I found myself inside a spacious factory building with a tin roof. Mr. Chen Shi-xian, the Chairman of Taoyuan City Young Farmers' Production Cooperative, greeted me. He has a sun-kissed complexion but speaks in a refined and cultured manner. While discussing the motivation behind the establishment of the cooperative, he explained, "When we talk about it, a common issue we faced was labor shortage. Instead of waiting for someone else to help us, why don't we create an organization to solve the problem by ourselves?"

Starting From Farmworkers Exchange to Professional Contract Farming
After obtaining his master's degree from the Graduate Institute of Food Science at National Pingtung University of Science and Technology (NPUST), Mr. Chen Shi-xian, a second-generation farmer, returned to his hometown in Dayuan to take over the family business.

The first challenges he faced were the pressures of the labor shortage and the overlapping of busy farming seasons. In the early stage, he used the most direct way: "Farmworkers Exchange." "You help me transplant rice seedlings, and I'll help you harvest. Let's fill the immediate gap." But soon they discovered that the farming busy seasons of the same crops were highly overlapped, and everyone was often powerless to help more.

Therefore, he suggested cross-crop collaboration, integrating different young farmers professionally in planting tea, mixed grains, vegetables, flowers, and seed cultivation. Then he officially established the "Taoyuan City Young Farmers' Production Cooperative" in April 2018, sharing "manpower and machines" to solve the agricultural labor shortage. As one of the 4^th "Hundred Young Farmers," Mr. Chen Shi-xian has long promoted mechanization and organization, which makes his actions from that fields chat more persuasive and influential.

The Three Pillars of the Cooperative: Dispatched Farmworker, Skills Training, and Technology
This method isn't just about helping each other but further steps into professionalization. The cooperative starts to train the "agricultural technicians" who can operate all kinds of agricultural machines and creates the system of shifting and training, step by step, to transform from farmworker exchange to dispatch farmwork. It provides support to members' fields during normal times and undertakes external tasks during the off-season, forming a network of dispatchable manpower and machinery.

"We don't like a traditional cooperative," noted Mr. Chen Shi-xian. The cooperative started with machine sharing. We separate the labor shortage problem into a clear standard operational process. While external farmers or farm owners request contact farming services, the cooperative first assesses the field area and time schedules, and then the team coordinates the deployment of agricultural technicians and machinery, which forms a standardized dispatching model.

The fees are divided into three parts: manpower, machinery, and vehicles. The daily wage of a farmworker is approximately NT$3,300; the machinery fee is calculated at 1% of the price of the agricultural machinery for 8 hours a day, with a minimum of NT$1,000. For example, the rental fee for a tractor for one day is approximately NT$30,000; as for vehicles used to transport agricultural machinery, the fees range from NT$2,500 to NT$6,000 depending on the tonnage and mileage.

About talent cultivation, he confessed that "the beautiful bubble of agriculture may seem huge, but it's actually quite cruel and realistic." Except for recruiting through job bank websites and job fairs, the cooperative also actively collaborates with agricultural programs to bring in government-funded interns. Mr. Chen explained that those interns are mostly second-generation farmers with clear career goals. With government subsidies for tuition and a requirement to complete four years of practice training followed by four years of studies, the retention rate is relatively stable. Through rotations and hands-on experience in cooperatives, they can truly understand what farm work looks like.

Mr. Chen Shi-xian further explained that the cooperative established a four-tiered assessment system for agricultural technicians:

Level 1 focuses on basic knowledge of pesticides, fertilizers, and crops, as well as harvesting efficiency;
Level 2 requires the ability to operate tillers, mix, and spray pesticides;
Level 3 requires familiarity with heavy machinery (such as tractors and tea harvesters) and work scheduling;
Level 4 requires the ability to work independently and allocate manpower, approaching the level of a farm owner.

"The agricultural technicians who reach the highest level have the option to start their own business or stay in the cooperative." He explains that if a farmworker chooses to stay, the cooperative will provide land and machinery, guarantee the purchases of their products to reduce startup costs, and ensure a stable income.

About the technique provided, it comes from the cooperation between the government and the research side. The Ministry of Agriculture, the Taoyuan District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, and the Tea Research and Extension Station provided practical sites and technical guidance. Mr. Chen Shi-xian gave an example: "After introducing the 5D plant identification devices, agricultural technicians can take pictures of pests and diseases in the field and transmit them back in real time. Experts from the Agricultural Research and Extension Station can interpret those pictures remotely so that the problems of the remote area can be solved in time."

In the financial operation, he explains that the cooperative applies relevant government programs, using program fees for manpower and training. The salaries of agricultural technicians are paid by the contracting farms through the Labor Standards Act, which gave the workers an allowance due to the nature of their work.

The allocation made the cooperative focus its resources on talent cultivation, schedule management, and machine maintenance to ensure the agri-machine team could replace old with new stably.

The cooperative has about 20 agricultural technicians in the early stage. Even if the workers join or leave, it has established a stable dispatch and training system, forming the collaboration network of machinery, manpower, and technique to support local agricultural operations.
 

Helping Returning Hometown Young Farmer to Build a Foundation, Made External Cities Learn and Replicate the Model
Reviewing the 8 years of cooperative establishment, Mr. Chen Shi-xian thought the most is a kind of gradually formed trust. "The strength of helping each other has become stronger; everyone can stand on their own, and the operation is more flexible," he said. The number of members has increased from the initial seven to the current twelve. Although there hasn't been a large-scale expansion, almost all these members own farms, are familiar with each other's rhythms, and have formed a stable and efficient cooperative foundation.

Government organizations introduce most of the customers; among them, there are also large contracting farming programs from public organizations. However, most of the farmers are young returning people. "Many young people didn't have practical farming experience and need someone who helps them to plant their first field." Mr. Chen Shi-xian explained that the cooperative provides crucial support to help them complete the first round of work, from land preparation and transplanting to harvesting, laying a solid foundation for their farming.

The cooperative has also improved local employment. It provides about 8 full-time and 2 to 3 part-time or seasonal positions, which is a visible career option for the local young people. In the meantime, its experience becomes a model example, promoting in Hualien, Taitung, Danshui, and Pali. The impact isn't limited in Taoyuan anymore.
 

Dispatching Thousands of Workers Annually Makes Agricultural Operations More Resilient
The data presents a clearer picture of the formation of the manpower network. The period from 2018 to 2022 is the fastest-growing phase. In 2024, the dispatching area reached 417 hectares, dispatching 1,031 workers, servicing 196 farms, and providing 5 training sessions.

The valuable point is that 80% of the dispatching workers are from the agri-machinery team and 20% are members. The first one provides stable and immediately professional manpower, and the second is to strengthen social co-assistance and keep the farming experience that local people are familiar with. The combination of the two teams enables the cooperative to maintain flexibility and supply capacity to meet the needs of different seasons and different types of operations, making the overall operation of local agriculture more resilient and sustainable.

Looking to the future, the cooperative will not only focus on mechanized farming but also extend to new areas such as drone disaster relief, pesticide application certification, and tractor operator training, preparing for the technology and talent needed for future agriculture.

From machine sharing in the beginning to the collaboration network that connects manpower, technique, and local requirements so far. The cooperative gradually turns "labor shortage" into "labor collaboration," providing local agriculture with a sustainable solution. To Mr. Chen Shi-xian, this is not solving the problems so far, but further making a way for the next agricultural generation.
Official Facebook Page of Taoyuan City Young Farmers' Production Cooperative
 

 

▲From machine sharing to a collaboration network, the cooperative starts from solving labor shortage and provides a package of sustainable operating solutions.
 

▲When facing the labor shortage in 2018, Mr. Chen Shi-xian suggested cross-crop collaboration, escaping the overlapping of the busy farming season and gathering different young farmers to establish a cooperative.
 

▲Mr. Chen Shi-xian won the title of Outstanding Professional Farmer of Dayuan District, Taoyuan City, and the champion of the Taiwan Rice Expert Selection this year.
 

Interviewee: Taoyuan City Young Farmers' Production Cooperative