Xialun Sweet Potato Charcoal Grill Introduction
Cai You-Tian (born in 1934) is a farmer who sells sweet potato vines (seedlings) to farmers for planting. The Cai brothers did not want to follow their family's traditional path. The eldest, Cai Zhen-Cun (born in 1964), went to the northern region to open a restaurant, while the second brother, Cai Zhen-Xiong (born in 1965), opened a supermarket in Kouhu. The restaurant struggled to operate and eventually closed down. Cai Zhen-Cun thought of his childhood sweet potatoes and began selling them at the Linjiang Traditional Market, with supplies provided by Cai Zhen-Xiong who stayed in their hometown. Surprisingly, the business prospered, though the profit was not high. After selling for a while, they switched to selling charcoal-grilled sweet potatoes, which became a well-known brand—“Tupuoshu Charcoal Grilled Sweet Potatoes,” registered as a trademark. In addition to supplying his brother Cai Zhen-Cun with the charcoal-grilled sweet potatoes, Cai Zhen-Xiong also became a supplier for over ten other charcoal-grilled sweet potato vendors in the northern region. In 2003, Cai Zhen-Xiong closed his supermarket business and focused on supplying sweet potatoes, while also starting to sell charcoal-grilled sweet potatoes himself, with his brother's approval. He registered the brand “Tupuoshu Charcoal Grilled Sweet Potatoes” and made a name for himself in the Xialun area. Cai Zhen-Xiong sources his sweet potatoes from two places; generally, they are from Yunlin County, but during months of September and October when local sweet potatoes are scarce, he purchases them from the mountainous areas in central Taiwan. In central Taiwan, sweet potatoes are planted in March and April, which aligns perfectly with the harvest time in September and October.
