Xinghua city in Jiangsu province was included on a national list several years ago that has since yielded rich results.
In July 2021 it was added onto the list of national agricultural science and technology modernization pilot counties and partnered with Nanjing Agricultural University to jointly advance and develop projects in the agricultural sector.
Focusing on the mixed farming of crayfish and crabs, Xinwu village in Hainan town, administered by Xinghua city, generated output value of 75 million yuan ($10.35 million) selling the crustaceans last year.
The successful practice is credited to the cooperation with Nanjing Agricultural University, which established a crayfish research and teaching base in the village and promoted a "Xinghua model" of mixed crayfish and crab farming.
In the initial stage of joint construction, Xinghua and Nanjing Agricultural University agreed that the city's industries – of rice, river crabs, specialized fruit and vegetables, freshwater fish and crayfish – had great industrial foundations and advantages.
The university then established eight joint research teams on research topics including green and efficient crop production, eco-friendly and healthy breeding of river crabs and improvements of mechanized equipment for vegetable production.
Highlighting the rice industry supply chain, the university constructed a smart rice cultivation model suitable for Xinghua.
It promoted the technology for machine planting, slow mixing, one-time fertilization and green prevention and control of the rice. Moreover, it established a traceable system for the whole rice production process – thereby achieving green, high-yield, high-quality, efficient and smart rice production.
A farmer patiently harvests a catch of crayfish. [Photo/article.xuexi.cn]