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5-2 Internal difficulties

The grape varieties in Dacun are overly homogeneous, with Kyoho Grape being dominant. This genetic uniformity makes the crops more vulnerable to extreme weather conditions. For example, in the summer of 2024, heavy rains led to a 12.4% infection rate of root rot among the grapevines. In addition, drastic temperature changes can also affect the growth of Kyoho grapes, impacting their sweetness and quality.

Labor shortages are another major issue. Grape cultivation requires significant labor, such as bagging grapes, which demands 380 hours of work per hectare. However, the average age of farmers in Dacun Township has exceeded 61 years old, and the proportion of young people willing to engage in agriculture is extremely low, putting the industry's future at risk.

In the past, farmers used dichloroethane to promote grape budding, but it was a highly toxic, unapproved pesticide. Despite this, some still used it. The current “bud-by-bud application method” requires 4-6 labor hours per unit of land, whereas the hydrogen cyanamide spraying technique promoted by the Taichung Agricultural Research and Extension Station can reduce the labor time to just 30 minutes. However, its adoption rate still needs to be improved.

The decline in brand value is also a concern. According to Google search trend data since October 2008, "Dacun grapes" has been the most commonly searched term. Excluding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, searches for "Changhua grapes" have been increasing.