在城市當農民 中國人種菜美國人種大麻
In China, concerns about food safety are so serious that residents at times take to the green spaces between tenements to plant gardens. Others farm on windowsills and balconies, or use specialized e-commerce services to track down safe vegetables and meats.
在中國，食品安全問題非常嚴重，以至於一些居民會在建築物之間的綠地裏種菜。還有人在窗臺和陽臺上種菜，或是使用專門的電商服務，來獲取安全的蔬菜和肉類。
These habits led Lennon Tsai to start a company that supplies all the hydroponics equipment necessary for a would-be urban farmer to get started on an indoor garden. While trying to sell equipment to a new Chinese middle class concerned about the rampant contamination of China’s soil and water, Mr. Tsai by chance came upon a secondary market in America.
這些習慣促使蔡萬巧(Lennon Tsai)開了一家公司，爲想在城裏務農的人提供各種必要的水培設備，以便開闢室內種植園。雖然蔡萬巧的初衷是面向中國新興的中產階層銷售設備，因爲他們對中國猖獗的土壤污染和水污染憂心忡忡，但他卻在不經意中發現了美國的一個二級市場。
“One of my U.S. customers bought my product and grew marijuana at his home and sent me the photo. I was really stunned; I was surprised our product could be used to grow marijuana,” Mr. Tsai said in a recent interview. “Only later did I realize it’s a big market.”
“一個美國客戶買了我的產品，在他家裏種出大麻，把照片拍給我看，把我嚇了一跳。我說，我們的產品怎麼可以種大麻嘛，”蔡萬巧在近期的一次採訪中說。“後來才知道說，原來這是一個很大的市場。”
With the help of cheap manufacturing, Mr. Tsai’s company, iGrow, is now aiming to build its presence in the United States by selling inexpensive grow kits. His company, based in Hangzhou, China, is an example of a new generation of Chinese start-ups that are more flexible, internationally aware and globally ambitious than their forebears.
在低成本製造的幫助下，蔡萬巧的公司宅耕科技(iGrow)現在希望通過銷售廉價的種植套件，在美國贏得一席之地。他的公司總部設在中國杭州。新一代中國初創企業比上一代更加靈活、更具國際意識和全球視野，他的公司就是一個例子。
In the interview, Mr. Tsai discusses the difficulties in selling his plan to his staff and why he founded his company.
在採訪中，蔡萬巧談到了向員工推廣自己的計劃時遇到的困難，以及爲什麼他會創辦這家公司。
Q. What is the background of iGrow?
問：爲什麼創辦iGrow這家公司？
A. I was born in a very rural environment. I grew up in a remote village, which had a very good environment surrounded by many flowers and plants. As a kid, I would plant stuff with adults; I planted rice, flowers and other types of agricultural crops. But with China’s industrialization, the place where I grew up now had been stripped of green plants. Also gone are the sentiments toward nature. So I have always had this wish or dream — is it possible for agriculture to get rid of the constraints of soil?
答：我從小生長在比較偏僻的農村裏面，當時的自然環境很好，有很多花卉、植物，小時候也有過這種種植的體驗。有時候跟着年紀大一點的人去耕種，種水稻、花卉、一些農作物。但是隨着我們國內工業化的進程，我們那一代小時候生活的片區也已經沒有了綠色植物。也沒有了這種自然的感覺。所以我心裏一直有個願望，有個夢想，就說我們農業是不是可以擺脫土地的束縛嗎？
Q. How has the younger generation taken to your products?
問：年輕一代對你的產品接受度如何？
A. Most of our customers are between 20 and 40 years old. The older generation is more used to things grown in soil; many put plants on their balcony and fertilize them every day, whereas young people don’t have time to do so, and they don’t have the knowledge. Young people don’t know how to grow plants.
答：我們的客戶大部分是20到40歲之間。上一代人更習慣土壤的東西；放到陽臺裏面去，每天澆水、施肥，但年輕人沒有這個時間，年輕人也不懂怎麼養植物。
We have some educational work to do, and it takes time to educate people about the idea of soil-free planting. For now, we will start with flowers. For flowers, you can actually see how they turn out. Many girls love flowers and green plants, but they are having a hard time nurturing them. Many aren’t even able to keep alive cactus, which thrive in deserts.
我們前期是要進行一定的教育工作，無土在室內種植的體驗和習慣是需要一段時間的推廣。所以我們先以花卉爲入口。花只要種好，這個事情是看得到的。很多女孩子喜歡綠色植物，喜歡花卉，但是她種不好。就連在沙漠裏可以活得很好的仙人掌，她都養不活。
Q. How did you realize there was a different market for hydroponics?
問：你是怎麼意識到水培還有另一個市場的？
A. I have some relatives living in California. The planting of marijuana is legal there under certain conditions. I didn’t pay much attention to such a market then. I thought marijuana had nothing to do with us. Then one of my U.S. customers bought my product and grew marijuana at his home and sent me the photo. I was really stunned; I was surprised our product could be used to grow marijuana. Only later did I realize that it’s a big market. I later learned that many people would like to grow marijuana at their homes. I conducted some research on marijuana in the United States. Some states have already legalized it, and others are considering it. In some states, medical use of marijuana is legal. Many U.S. customers have shown a willingness to cooperate, which reinforces my belief that we can achieve something really big in the market.
答：我有一些親戚在加州生活。跟我們提過大麻種植合法，但是是有條件的。當時我並沒有在意這樣的市場，也漠不關心，認爲大麻和我們這個沒關係。後來一個美國客戶買了我的產品，在他家裏種出大麻，把照片拍給我看，把我嚇了一跳。我說，我們的產品怎麼可以種大麻嘛。後來才知道說，原來這是一個很大的市場。在加州很多人願意在家裏種大麻。後來我專門對美國的大麻市場做過一些調研，現在有些州已經放開了，有一些州在逐步放開，還有一些州醫用大麻是合法的，政府是允許醫用大麻這一塊的。當我們想對產品做一些改進的時候，發現很多美國客戶過來跟我們說願意合作，願意來打這個市場。在這個過程中更加確定了這個市場是大有所爲的信心。
People began to use equipment to grow marijuana toward the end of last year, early this year in California. It’s been a while. It’s just I didn’t pay much attention in the beginning, and later it became a strategy for our company overseas.
去年底、今年初的時候，開始有人用我們的機器種大麻。一開始我沒留意，到後來這變成我們公司在國外的一個戰略。
Q. In China, the use of marijuana is far less common, and it faces serious stigmas. Did you face any opposition from your staff about the plan?
問：在中國，吸大麻遠遠沒那麼普遍，是非常見不得人的事。你的員工對這項發展計劃有反對意見嗎？
A. There were some concerns with our R and D team; they had some worries. Many believed marijuana is a bad thing. It’s not like growing flowers or vegetables, which are perceived as very healthy. They believed marijuana is unhealthy and harmful to human beings. That’s why some people were concerned about this, because they hoped the products we undertake would be good for human health and purification of indoor air. There were some arguments. But later, we managed to quell their concerns. We had undertaken some work. One is that we used a video from the National Geographic Channel that introduced what marijuana is, its status in the United States, why the government there has permitted its use and why it has legalized it in some states. This is to let people know that marijuana is not what people thought.
答：我們的研發團隊有些顧慮。他們認爲大麻是不好的東西，不像種花或蔬菜，非常健康。他們覺得大麻不健康，對人有害。所以他們對這個有情緒，因爲員工希望我的產品種出的東西有利於人的健康，有助於淨化室內空氣。所以當時產生過爭論。但是後來我們解決了員工的顧慮，我們做了幾項工作。第一個就是，我們在美國國家地理頻道找到一個視頻，專門介紹什麼是大麻，大麻在美國的情況，以及政府爲什麼允許使用大麻，爲什麼在有些州是合法的。就是讓員工明白，大麻並不像人們想象的那麼負面。
Q. How did your peers respond to the idea?
問：你的同輩人對此怎麼看？
A. A classmate of mine is doing his Ph.D. in biology at Yale, and he told me I must pay attention to the marijuana market in the United States. I said why? He said it’s very likely the market will be bigger than your flower market in China. Marijuana is our priority in the States, but we also do vanilla and mint, things widely used in Western food.
答：我有個同學在耶魯大學讀生物學博士，他告訴我必須要重視美國的大麻市場。我說爲什麼？他說這個市場極有可能會超過你在中國大陸的市場。在美國，我們把大麻作爲重點，但我們也有設備可以種植香草、薄荷等西餐中比較常用的植物。
Q. Do you think your company is an indication of how Chinese start-ups are becoming more internationally minded?
問：你覺得你的公司是否代表着一種新的潮流，可以體現出中國創業公司開始更具國際市場開拓意識？
A. My mother and my sister are all in Spain. Many of friends live in the States, and many of my classmates are thinking of immigrating there. Many were educated in the United States. We are eager to learn about the information overseas, and we want to learn about the business part. Ten years ago, the past generation did not have a lot of ideas about the world, but ours is more international, and we want to expand our business in mainland China to the overseas market. We want to build a global business community. I am just one person from our generation, and maybe I represent some hopes of our generation, namely that we want people overseas to participate in our business and we want them to be able to enjoy our products.
答：我媽媽和姐姐都在西班牙。我有很多朋友生活在美國，包括我的很多同學都是移民到美國，直接在美國讀的大學。國外信息來的時候，我這類人是蠻有衝動去了解，想把生意做過去。十年前，可能上一代人這種想法不是那麼多，但我感覺從我們這一代人開始，已經越來越國際化。我們想把自己在中國大陸做的事情也做到國外去，建立起一個全球商業社區。我是這個羣體的其中一員，可能代表着我們這代人的一些希望，希望國外合適的客戶羣體也能參與我們做的事，能享受到我們的產品。
