Naluo Village Introduction
Traveling from Neiwan to Naluo Village, after passing the Naluo Police Station, remember to roll down your car window, take a deep breath, and truly feel the air filled with various scents, different with each season, in the Herb Village. Regardless of whether you can identify the herbs by their smells, you will surely agree that they all share a common name: happiness. Naluo is a village predominantly inhabited by the Atayal people, and the indigenous understanding of natural crops runs in their blood. They have delicate minds and skillful hands, embodying a philosophy of living harmoniously with nature. Under the guidance of the Indigenous Peoples Committee, the Hsinchu County Government, and the Hsinchu Seed Improvement Station, Naluo Village began systematically planting "aromatic medicinal plants," commonly known as herbs, over a decade ago. They also established a production and marketing team, sparking a wave of herb planting across the country. However, just as the herb industry began to thrive, Typhoon Aere in 2004 devastated their prospects overnight. Severe landslides destroyed all the flower fields and dealt a heavy blow to the villagers' confidence. Fortunately, the leader of the production and marketing team, Wu Hsiu-mei, firmly believed that as the living conditions of people improved, the demand for herbs would continue to rise. Thus, she led her team in researching and developing processed herb applications, allowing Naluo Herb Village not only to provide raw materials but also to produce high-value herb products. Over ten years, driven by determination and utilizing organic cultivation, they established a close connection with herbs. Today, the essential oils from Naluo Herb Village supply renowned domestic skincare manufacturers, and even the brands with the strictest quality control in Germany come to purchase. The persistence of the Herb Village has finally brought them their happiness. Leader Wu mentioned that although many people’s impressions of herbs are limited to Western products, it is noted in the Compendium of Materia Medica that there are as many as twenty-eight types of herbs and fragrant flowers, including daffodils. The legend of Emperor Yan and the Divine Farmer states that “he first tasted hundreds of herbs, thus the creation of medicine,” indicating that herbs are indeed not foreign imports. In aspects such as food seasoning, folk health, beauty maintenance, essential oil aromatherapy, and medicinal concoction, one can find the roots of herbs in Chinese culture. Therefore, combining Western herb knowledge while leveraging our existing cultural characteristics is the way to cultivate a localized herb lifestyle. For example, when rosemary is mentioned, people often think of pairing it with grilled meat. However, leader Wu says that using rosemary when stir-frying clams (or other shellfish) is even more flavorful. If you want to learn more about herb cooking or even make your skincare products, why not book a stroll through the flower fields and let leader Wu and the members of the production and marketing team guide you into their herb kingdom?
