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From Customer to Partner: Twenty Years of Trust with a Colombian Poultry Farmer— A Tribute to Outstanding Poultry Farmers Around the World

2026-09-04
In Armenia, Colombia, Rafael, a 63-year-old poultry farmer with over four decades of industry experience, has dedicated his entire life to cultivating this productive land. Over the past twenty years, he has built a cross-Pacific partnership rooted in collaboration and mutual trust. The Globaltech Group, which he founded, operates three standardized broiler farms and 19 professional poultry houses, with a permanent flock of 850,000 broilers and an annual output exceeding 5.5 million birds. It is a large-scale, prestigious farming enterprise in the region. Serving as Vice President of Fenavi Coffee Area, Rafael is deeply engaged in the industry and has made significant contributions to the development of Colombia’s poultry sector.
Tribute to the Outstanding Breeder — Raphael
Beyond his industry roles, Rafael holds a special and close bond with Big Herdsman: he was among the first customers to help Qingdao Big Herdsman enter the Colombian market. Over these twenty years, through both challenges and successes, he has grown into a core strategic partner of the company. From 2005 to 2026, twenty years have passed, yet this bond across mountains and oceans has never been broken. It all began with a magazine, grew through trust, and flourished through mutual growth — ultimately becoming an extraordinary story of international cooperation between a Chinese brand and an overseas farmer.

 

A bond takes root :Born from original aspiration, forged in integrity

 

                                                   Raphael (fifth from the left) in a group photo with his father (fourth from the left) and family members

In 2005, a fortuitous opportunity changed the landscape of his business and opened a profound connection between Big Herdsman and the Colombian market. At that time, after years of deep industry experience, Rafael came across Big Herdsman’s logo and contact information in a trade fair magazine. Eager to explore high-quality poultry equipment, he decided to call China directly and reached out to Ms. Wu of Big Herdsman. He even traveled thousands of miles to China to initiate a cooperation whose future was still uncertain.
At that time, Big Herdsman was still in its early growth stage, with limited enterprise scale and production capacity. During this initial cooperation, the feeding pans Rafael purchased delivered excellent performance and superior quality, allowing him to quickly trust this young Chinese brand and place a second order.However, the second shipment presented quality issues: the products were fragile, their stability was insufficient, and there was a clear gap compared to the first delivery. Rafael immediately reported the problem from Colombia. Without argument or accusation, he simply waited for a response. Big Herdsman’s reply fully demonstrated the integrity and responsibility of a Chinese enterprise. Ms. Wu, reaching across thousands of miles to Colombia, made a firm promise: “We will bear all losses in full.” With no evasion, no excuses, and no delay, the company took complete responsibility with absolute sincerity.
This incident did not end the cooperation; on the contrary, it solidified the foundation of trust. “From that moment on, I knew that Big Herdsman was a truly responsible and trustworthy company.” From then on, Rafael completely changed his perception of Big Herdsman. In the following years, he frequently traveled between China and Colombia, engaging in deep exchanges with Mr. Wang and Ms. Wu, and their cooperation and friendship grew ever stronger. Gradually, he transitioned from a customer to a “family member” walking alongside the company, becoming one of the most loyal companions in Big Herdsman’s international expansion.
       Text message sent by Raphael
Twenty years ago, a resolute trust planted the seed of cooperation. Twenty years later, nurtured by time, that seed has grown into a towering tree with deep roots in international markets, full of vitality.
Iterative Upgrade:From piecing together scattered devices to a complete benchmark system

Before meeting Big Herdsman, Rafael’s business was constrained by fragmented equipment. At that time, Colombia’s high-end farming equipment heavily relied on European imports. The equipment in his farms came from 16 small European manufacturers, with cooling pads, fans, and accessories belonging to different brands such as Munters and Jansen.
This multi-brand approach made operation and maintenance extremely complex. Every farm expansion or new project required coordination with over ten suppliers, resulting in high communication costs, significant coordination difficulties, poor equipment compatibility, and low maintenance efficiency — severely limiting the transition toward large-scale, standardized production.
In 2005, deep cooperation with Big Herdsman completely broke this deadlock. Starting with individual products such as feeding pans and fans, the stable performance, excellent quality, and attentive service allowed Rafael to continuously verify the strength of Chinese agricultural equipment. As cooperation deepened, he gradually completed a comprehensive modernization upgrade of his entire equipment system.
In 2010, the second standardized farm was completed. Nine years later, the third modern farming base began operations. Today, all three of Rafael’s farms and 19 poultry houses have been fully modernized and are entirely equipped with Big Herdsman’s broiler production systems.

 

Among them, the most recently built intelligent poultry house has become a benchmark project for Colombia’s poultry industry. From steel structure construction to integrated broiler system installation, from precision environmental control equipment to intelligent feeding systems, the entire process adopted Big Herdsman’s most advanced R&D achievements and production processes available at the time. This intelligent, standardized, and intensive production model has profoundly transformed the local traditional farming model.

After being put into operation, this benchmark house received widespread industry recognition for its outstanding equipment performance, efficient system output, and stable farming results, becoming a demonstration site visited by other Colombian farmers for learning. Through this, the quality and capability of the Chinese agricultural brand have been firmly established in the international market.

 

Breaking Through Against the Trend: A Resilient Farming Amid the Shadow of Avian Epidemics

 

 

Benchmark equipment delivers benchmark results. Against a backdrop of widespread industry pressure, Rafael’s modern poultry houses have delivered results that have captured the attention of Colombia’s entire poultry sector.

Currently, Colombia’s poultry industry maintains steady growth. In 2025, total industry production reached 3.17 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 9.1%. However, the threat of highly pathogenic avian influenza continues to loom. The Colombian Agricultural Institute has implemented import control measures on multiple occasions. With recurrent outbreaks and frequent risks, the entire industry has been operating under high pressure and caution, with production losses and mortality rates generally running high.

 

 

It is precisely in this highly challenging environment, supported by Big Herdsman’s intelligent integrated farming system, that Rafael’s farms have achieved counter-trend growth: Whether in terms of feed conversion ratio, broiler body weight uniformity, or mortality rate during the rearing process, all are far superior to the local industry level.

Compared with traditional old houses, the new houses have achieved comprehensive improvements in efficiency, quality, and production stability, thanks to the advantages of precision environmental control, scientific feeding, efficient ventilation, and intelligent management. The real data and results achieved under adversity strongly demonstrate that advanced farming equipment is the fundamental cornerstone for reducing costs, increasing efficiency, mitigating risks, and achieving stable large-scale development.

 

Concerted Efforts for Symbiotic Growth

From cooperative clients to strategic partners sharing a common destiny

 

 

 

Twent years of walking side by side — time has distilled trust, and the years have deepened affection. The relationship between Rafael and Big Herdsman has long since transcended a simple supplier-buyer dynamic, evolving from “customer” to “partner,” and from “fellow traveler” to a true community of shared growth. Today, Rafael is not only Big Herdsman’s most loyal user but also its core distributor and brand representative in the Colombian market.

This honor and trust stem from twenty-three years of mutual commitment and weathering storms together. During the difficult period of Big Herdsman’s international expansion, when business faced pressure, Rafael firmly chose to advance alongside the company. Today, with the brand’s rapid growth, he has proactively taken on the responsibility of local promotion, deepening his presence in the Colombian market and helping the Chinese agricultural brand go global and take root.

Looking to the present and the future, Rafael has a clear and firm development plan. He plans to build a professional service team focused on local farmers’ needs, offering Colombian customers integrated farming solutions and the turnkey services. “Colombia’s poultry industry is growing rapidly, and customer demand for standardized, intelligent production is becoming increasingly urgent. The market potential is enormous,” he stated. In the future, he will continue to increase investment, deepen his presence in the international agricultural sector, and work hand in hand with Big Herdsman to explore new opportunities and build a new vision for the industry.

Twenty years of cross-ocean cooperation is also a legend in the industry. It all began with a chance encounter in a magazine advertisement, was cemented by trust born from an act of responsibility, and strengthened through growing together along the way. From the initial quality issue and sincere perseverance to the joint construction of benchmark projects and the expansion into international markets, the story of Rafael and Big Herdsman is a vivid example of mutually beneficial cooperation between enterprises from different countries. It also powerfully demonstrates that Chinese agricultural brands are fully capable of reaching the world and taking root in international markets.

In 2025, Colombia’s poultry industry achieved remarkable results once again. Behind these numbers are countless poultry farmers like Rafael — people rooted in the land, working tirelessly, holding firm to their beliefs, and pressing forward with determination. With focus they confront risks, with expertise they strengthen the industry, and with perseverance they safeguard livelihoods, quietly driving the continuous progress of global agriculture and animal husbandry.

A tribute to Rafael — this agricultural professional who has crossed mountains and oceans, stayed true to his original aspirations, and marched forward with determination alongside his partners. And a tribute to every great poultry farmer around the world who works tirelessly in the agricultural sector, connecting people through trust and building the future with perseverance. It is precisely the dedication and passion of countless ordinary people that sustain the endless growth, prosperity, and flourishing of global agriculture year after year.