Walnuts help Tibetan village get on the road to prosperity

A walnut tree in Chomkang village in Nang county, Nyingchi city of Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region, is a must-see sight for local people, as it is over 2,000 years old, and requires 12 people to extend their arms to hug it.

Though the tree is a "senior" for its age, it's still productive even now, with an annual walnut production of more than 2,000 kg.

Not only this walnut tree, others in Chomkang village are also "stars" in helping local people get out of poverty. There are 300 walnut trees belonging to 126 families in this forest, with the annual output of walnuts of more than 7,000 kg.

In the past, the price of walnuts per kg was about 16 yuan ($2.37), Now, without all kinds of intermediate links, villagers can sell walnuts directly online, and the price of walnuts per kg can reach about 25 yuan. Currently, via the e-commerce channels, the average income of the households in Chomkang has increased by more than 1,500 yuan, with the overall rise of 192,000 yuan.

"Our goal is to achieve an annual sale of 200,000 yuan of Chomkang walnut, " said Yang Zi'an, an official assigned here for poverty relief.