Model and music student takes charge of the family fruit factory

Model and music student takes charge of the family fruit factory

2023-06-13

Agriculture is often thought of as a traditional, even conservative field. But in fact, there’s lots of fresh blood coming into the field all the time – especially now in the wake of COVID-19. Today we meet one young farmer who’s taking over the reins of the family fruit business. Chang Nai-wen was a model and music student, before she decided to get into fruit. Now she’s taken charge of the family fruit factory, and is responsible for supplying fruit to almost 200 schools nationwide.

All the workers are wrapped up head to toe in hygienic uniform here at this fruit-cutting plant in Kaohsiung’s Qishan District. But one young face is bound to catch your attention: This is Chang Nai-wen.

She single-handedly managed a refit of the whole factory’s cold chain, as well as an upgrade of the processing procedures. But three years ago, she was completely ignorant of agriculture.

Here she is, conducting an orchestra. Chang has a master’s in music from National Sun Yat-sen University, and majored in conducting. And if you think she looks like she could be a model, that’s right, she’s appeared in lots of commercials too.

Chang Nai-wen
Agricultural distribution cooperative
It was really because of my shiba inu. Whenever I have free time I want to come home and chill with her. So I went along to have a look, and thought it seemed great and I was interested.

Chang jokes that she moved back home and got into the industry to have more time to spend with her dog. She had to start from scratch in studying agriculture, but she’s serious about bringing change to this seemingly traditional industry.

Chang Nai-wen
Agricultural distribution cooperative
The three fields that I’m in are all very contrasting, or a bit contradictory. But I actually think those contradictions are a plus for me.

Chang Chih-jung
Agricultural distribution cooperative
Our methods are quite conservative, of course. Now, young people have their own ways of thinking. I approve of their ideas, so we allowed her to throw her all into it.

Chang’s father has let his daughter take on a major role. The company is currently responsible for supplying 170 elementary and junior high schools across Taiwan. That means daily lunch fruit for more than 100,000 children. But schools have big breaks in summer and winter. Chang has developed a fruit box business aimed at big tech manufacturers, to pick up the slack in the school holidays.

Chang Nai-wen
Agricultural distribution cooperative
You have to think how your boxes can be different from others, or how you can present them differently, or how to market your brand. These are the things to consider. And then when you do it, when you get the clients’ orders, you think “this feels like an achievement.”

From conductor to model to young farmer, Chang has already had a very broad-ranging career, and now she hopes to change the image of fruit in customers’ minds.