Cooperation on intelligent agriculture to benefit Bay Area

The Nansha Summit of the Forum on China Smart Fishing, held in Guangzhou’s Nansha district on Dec 15, has led to several agreements being signed.

A strategic cooperation framework agreement between the Administrative Committee of Nansha Development Zone and the China Agricultural University is among these agreements.

“We will build an aquaponic base covering an area of at least 150 mu (100,000 square meters), and will improve the equipment and the water quality to promote the resource utilization rate by use of technologies including artificial intelligence, 5G, and blockchain,” said Li Daoliang, professor of the university.

The Guangzhou Nansha Modern Agricultural Industry Group Co also reached agreements with four institutions respectively, including the China Fishery Industry Internet of Things and Big Data Innovation Alliance, Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency, and Guangzhou Brand and Quality Innovation Association.

Nansha will be fostered as a non-staple food distribution center, supplying vegetables, dairy, pork and poultry products to Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions under unified evaluation rules, according to a document.

The district’s Party Secretary Cai Chaolin said that industry rejuvenation is an important prerequisite for rural revitalization. With its 236.7-square kilometer agricultural land covering 29.5 percent of the district’s total area, Nansha has great potential for agriculture.

The aquaculture industry is a main focus for local agricultural development. Nansha achieved 3.46 billion yuan ($492.87 million) total output value in this sector in 2018, ranking first in the whole city of Guangzhou.

In addition, it has the largest portion of shares in the domestic market in more than 20 ornamental fish species, showing its solid foundation for developing modern fishing.

The district will construct a modern, full chain, industrial fishing system with production, manufacturing, technology and branding, in order to proceed along a road of rural revitalization with its own characteristics.

The event, which gathered over 300 experts, scholars and entrepreneurs, was a forum for discussions about scientific research and the industrial development of smart fishing based on the latest trends, as well as the plan to construct a deeply integrated industry platform.