2026 New Year Address

With hope in your heart, the world is vast.

Liu Yonghao, Chairman of New Hope Group

Standing at the starting point of 2026, and bidding farewell to the adjustment and transformation of 2025, this year, despite numerous difficulties and challenges, all members of New Hope Group, together with our partners, achieved some breakthroughs and innovations. Like most private enterprises, we responded to new challenges and sought new development with hard work and dedication.

I still remember the symposium on private enterprises at the beginning of the year, where, as a representative of traditional enterprises, I reported to the General Secretary on our exploration and practice of transformation and upgrading. The General Secretary's words, "The time is ripe for private enterprises and entrepreneurs to fully demonstrate their capabilities," became the guiding star for private enterprises navigating the storms of the new era.

Looking back, from the initial tentative steps and trial-and-error of reform and opening up, to seizing opportunities and expanding our territory in the wave of globalization, we, as private enterprises, have gained a firm foothold in the tide of the times and accumulated a certain scale and achievements. We are beneficiaries of the times, as well as participants and builders. We have contributed to China's economic take-off with our sweat and wisdom. Through decades of trials and tribulations, private enterprises have long since grown into an indispensable and important force in China's development landscape.

Today, high-quality development has become the main theme, and the wave of transformation urges us to break through existing limitations and seek change. How can traditional enterprises find their direction and adapt to the growth pace of this new era? Over the past year, some have said that many companies are struggling. I have three insights to share.

First, let confidence be our sail as we "roll upwards," creating a new pattern of high-quality development. "Rolling upwards" is the persistence, hard work, and diligence ingrained in entrepreneurs; it is the foundation for our confidence in facing challenges. However, we must also be aware that "rolling downwards" through low-price competition and internal friction will only drag down the industry. Only an upward breakthrough through "rolling upwards in innovation, quality, and service" is the right path to break through existing limitations.

We uphold the beliefs of "no anxiety, no complacency, no fear of difficulties," and "striving, transformation, and technology," treating the industry adjustment period as a "sharpening period" to hone our internal skills. We focus on our core business, optimize our industrial structure; work hard to reduce costs and increase efficiency, deeply explore management potential; and dedicate ourselves to innovation, driving development and transformation.

This is inseparable from the efforts of every employee. Our flavoring technicians, through years of research into spices, invented a unique stir-frying process that saves 2% on energy consumption; our feed equipment repair technicians, through hard work, completed a coding machine modification project themselves in just two days, while the equipment manufacturer would have taken a month and spent 30,000 yuan; our dairy sales staff adopted a dual-track model of "store visits + post-market analysis," resulting in a steady increase in monthly sales per store. They say, "We sell not just products, but trust and value."

Mid-year, Liu Chang traveled to Indonesia and confidently spoke at a symposium for Chinese-funded enterprises chaired by the Premier, telling the world the story of Chinese enterprises: In Egypt, the first batch of trainees in the China-Egypt "New Hope" aquaculture technology training program graduated; in Bangladesh, 9,000 impoverished women received aquaculture skills training over three years… These achievements further strengthen our belief that only by adopting a positive and upward-striving attitude can we achieve high-quality development.

Secondly, innovation is the key to injecting new vitality into traditional industries. Innovation is not about starting from scratch, but about cultivating better crops on familiar land. For traditional industries, new productivity is never an abstract concept but a tangible reality, manifested in concrete actions like "a stronger pig, fresher milk, and more flavorful meat."

This year, we leveraged digital and biotechnology as our two wings, actively developing bio-breeding to firmly grasp the "lifeline" of industrial development:

We collaborated with research institutions to streamline the process from laboratory findings to production scenarios. Our successful development of a high-density SNP gene chip propelled pig breeding into a new "genome-driven" stage; "Pig Xiaoxin," built upon an AI-powered model, serves as an excellent management and veterinary assistant; and 24-hour continuous monitoring of pig coughs enabled early detection, intervention, and prevention of respiratory diseases in pigs.

We adapted to the shift in consumer demand from "eating enough" to "eating well" and "eating fresh," utilizing modern technology to optimize and upgrade product taste, launching products such as 24-hour fresh milk, flavorful tree tomatoes, and red sour soup, while also upgrading our intelligent cold chain logistics. Workers at the fresh milk factory fill bottles precisely at midnight, logistics drivers set off at 2 AM, and milkmen begin delivering the freshest milk to customers at 5 AM—this is our 24-hour fresh milk service… It is these small acts of innovation and hard work that have earned us recognition and affirmation from all sides. To date, we have received eight National Science and Technology Progress Awards (Second Class). Our affiliated companies, such as New Hope Dairy, Meihua Foods, and Caogen Capital, have achieved significant growth during downturns, revitalizing traditional industries.

Third, we take responsibility and integrate our development into the great cause of rural revitalization. New Hope was born and raised in the countryside; we deeply understand that corporate development cannot be separated from the nourishment of society, and giving back to society is our responsibility.

In 1994, I, along with nine other private entrepreneurs, issued a nationwide initiative to dedicate ourselves to the Guangcai (Glorious Cause) poverty alleviation program. Over the past thirty years, we have invested over 5 billion yuan in Guizhou, Gansu, Ningxia, and other regions, building more than 150 Guangcai poverty alleviation factories. We have trained over 87,000 skilled young people, and more than 500 students have graduated from our "Village Chief Class," achieving the goal of "one person's training benefits an entire village." Yan Yushan, a post-70s graduate from Xiaogang Village in Anhui Province, after achieving entrepreneurial success, wants to lead his fellow villagers to prosperity, just like his father Yan Hongchang, who spearheaded the "household responsibility system." This deeply moves me. This year, I was re-elected as Honorary Vice President of the Guangcai (Glorious Cause) Foundation, an honor that carries a heavy responsibility for me.

2026 will still be a year of adjustment and transformation. The road ahead may be challenging, but we are not fighting alone. In the new year, we must work harder on technological innovation, organizational reform, and management improvement; we must maintain the humility and pragmatism of "doing big things with the spirit of a small enterprise"; we must keep a tight rein on management, cost control, and innovation, and proceed steadily and surely.

New Hope has been around for 43 years, growing from a small boat into a ship sailing against the waves. In the second 40-year voyage, though the road ahead may be long, as long as we hold hope in our hearts, the world will seem vast. We must not only keep up with market trends and national progress, but also strive to keep pace with the times, sailing more steadily and going further on the high seas. Thank you to all our cadres, employees, and their families; thank you to our upstream and downstream partners and all our collaborators; thank you to everyone who cares about and supports New Hope!

Sailing against the wind and waves, singing as we go, with hope in our hearts, the world is vast. Happy New Year!

New Year's Day 2026

2025 New Year Address

Steadfast Responsibility, Embracing New Challenges of the Era

Liu Chang, Director of New Hope Group & Chairman of New Hope Liuhe

2024 is a crucial year for achieving the goals and tasks of the 14th Five Year Plan. The steady development of new quality productive forces has become an important driving force for the country's economic transformation and upgrading, which will promote higher quality, more efficient, more equitable, more sustainable, and safer development of the national economy. At this important moment, we adhere to the corporate mission of "seeking benefits for farmers and benefiting food consumers", promote the integration of sustainable development concepts into business decision-making and production operations, and work with stakeholders upstream and downstream of the value chain to cultivate a sustainable development ecosystem, creating more comprehensive economic, environmental, and social value for economic and social development.

Steady and far-reaching progress is a firm belief in building a solid foundation for development. In the face of an increasingly complex external development environment, we will deeply integrate the concept of sustainable development with our company culture, development strategy, and risk prevention and control, and explore the construction of a scientific, effective, and new hopeful corporate governance system. We adhere to the comprehensive leadership of the board of directors in ESG, and strive to improve the independence and professionalism of the board's decision-making in accordance with the law, to help the company achieve healthy development and stable growth with good corporate governance. We adhere to business ethics, maintain a fair and open market order, and work together with stakeholders to create a sustainable business future in economic development and business practices.

Quality first is the solid footprint of adhering to the original intention of the enterprise. We always attach great importance to technological innovation centered on industry and products. Last year, we were approved to add a postdoctoral research workstation and actively applied for the establishment of the National Feed and Grain Technology Innovation Center. Biological breeding research has achieved a breakthrough, and multiple key core technologies have been independently controllable. We are committed to using technological innovation as an important driving force to promote safer, more nutritious, and healthier product supply. We use digitalization to enhance quality and efficiency, strictly adhere to quality standards, gradually expand non resistance certification, and supply live pigs to Hong Kong from day to night. There have been no product recalls or negative incidents throughout the year, and with better products and services, we continuously enhance the sense of gain, happiness, and security of our customers and consumers.

Green mountains and clear waters are the responsibility of building a beautiful China. We adhere to the development concept of "green mountains and clear waters are as valuable as mountains of gold and silver", and view the relationship between economic development and environmental protection from a scientific perspective. We vigorously develop and promote the industrial model of circular agriculture, reduce the impact of waste emissions from breeding farms on the environment, and produce 104800 tons of fermented manure, 15.7532 million tons of reclaimed water, 2.5759 million kilograms of fresh fruits and vegetables, and achieve biological carbon sequestration of about 94500 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent throughout the year. We make good use of various resources and technologies to improve the efficiency of raw grain, feed, and energy use through production management, technological upgrades, and other aspects. We have scientifically saved 667300 tons of grain, taken practical actions to protect food security, actively respond to the challenges brought by climate change, and promote the development of enterprises to achieve qualitative and effective improvement and healthy growth in quantity in green transformation, contributing to the realization of harmonious development between humans and nature.

Zhiye Guanqing is a heartfelt interpretation of fulfilling social responsibility. We look back on the 30-year poverty alleviation journey of 'Glorious' and continue to serve as a' reliable force '. In the process of participating in the rural revitalization strategy, through a combination of industrial investment, technical support, talent cultivation, and employment promotion, we aim to increase the income of pig farmers by over 3 billion yuan by 2024, and serve a total of 212700 small and medium-sized agricultural enterprises, contributing to the beautiful vision of common prosperity. We attach great importance to talent cultivation and development, strive to create an inclusive, equal, and harmonious workplace environment for employees, provide care for employees through beautiful farms and mutual aid funds, carry out management and vocational training for reserve cadres, veterinarians, etc., and pave the way for employees' growth and development. When a major typhoon swept through Southeast Asia, companies from the Philippines, Vietnam, and Bangladesh helped affected households resume work and production, and restart their lives; In China, the 4th village chief class launched the "Seed Plan" to deeply cultivate rural development leaders, the "Hope Plan" achieved the wishes of students in the 8th season, poverty alleviation pig farms deep in the mountains welcomed their 6th year of dividends, and the "Warm Winter Action" entered Tibet in the 11th year, once again bringing hope and warmth to small villages on the plateau.

2025 is the year when the 14th Five-Year Plan comes to an end and the 15th Five-Year Plan begins. New Hope will continue to be guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, integrate national strategies into the company's future development, actively adapt to industrial and market changes under new technologies and new patterns, lead employees with the wartime cultural spirit of "established by trust and lasting by love", build a close full-chain community of shared future with industry partners, and meet the opportunities and challenges of the new era with 43 years of unchanged corporate mission, development resilience and sense of responsibility.