Youth returns home to farm the land and plant Sweet Gold

Winter is the high season for “Sweet Gold” cherry tomatoes, which are rich in beta carotene and have three times the vitamin C content of ordinary tomatoes. Ever since Kaohsiung’s Meinong District began promoting the cultivation of Sweet Gold cherry tomatoes, young people have been returning home to plant them. 25-year-old Huang Hua-yi (黃化邑), who was born and raised in the area, gave up his original job as a quality control engineer and returned to his hometown to help his mother grow tomatoes.

But despite his zeal and determination, family elders didn’t approve of his decision at first, and Hua-yi faced a great deal of disdain and disparaging remarks. Through dedicating all his time and energy to the family tomato business and sacrificing much of his recreation time, today, Hua-yi runs the whole show and is taking the load off of his mother. The time Hua-yi spends with his mother in the fields has provided a great opportunity for mother and son to build an even deeper bond.

以下為中文對照

青年返鄉當青農 種植在地香甜番茄

每年冬天是正值橙蜜香番茄的盛產時期，橙蜜香番茄內含豐富的beta胡蘿蔔素，且維他命C含量更是一般番茄的三倍。自從高雄市的美濃推廣種植橙蜜香番茄後，吸引了許多青年返鄉種植。25歲的黃化邑，放棄原本的品管師工作，回到家鄉幫媽媽種番茄，滿腔熱血的他起初並沒有受到長輩的認同。

生長在這塊土地的黃化邑，從一開始被看不起到後來的獨當一面，是犧牲了許多娛樂時間，讓番茄重新成為他的生活重心，一切的堅持是為了他的母親。每當他們一起在農田工作時，是黃化邑與媽媽，更貼近彼此的時候。