A "new farmer" has led his team to set up a smart "plant factory" in Zunyi City of southwest China's Guizhou Province, introducing technological innovation into traditional agriculture.
Overcoming various challenges over the past five years, "new farmer" Xu Wei, head of Guizhou Youshu Agricultural Development Co., Ltd., has transformed strawberry, a seasonal fruit, into a product that can be produced and harvested at any time throughout the year.
In Sidu Town, Xu's smart plant factory feels like a cozy "garden house." Currently, it is the peak strawberry season in the market, but the plant factory has few berries ready for picking.
"When strawberries are in abundant supply, we should scale back production. But when supply is low, we may need to ramp up sales to bridge the market gap," he said.
Born in 1981 in Wenzhou City of east China's Zhejiang Province, Xu graduated with a master's degree from Zhejiang University and had been working in the IT industry in Hangzhou City. In 2017, he was introduced to Zunyi as a high-level talent and decided to settle down in the western region.
In December 2019, Xu responded to the call for professional talents in Zunyi to lead the establishment of a rural revitalization demonstration base. He leased a piece of land in Sidu Town, built greenhouses, and started cultivating strawberries, officially embarking on his entrepreneurial journey. In the early days, Xu and his team had tried to develop a big data system for managing strawberry cultivation.
"Strawberries need five key factors to thrive: temperature, moisture, light, nutrients, and air. You must test these factors based on permutation and combination theory. For instance, even if the air quality is perfect, improper lighting can still hinder growth. How much carbon dioxide should be added? We don’t just rely on lab instruments for measurements - we also immerse ourselves in the environment to observe,” he said.
After more than 1,800 days and nights of experimentation, spanning thousands of trials, his team successfully developed models for strawberry growth. They also selected one suitable for indoor cultivation from over 70 varieties.
In January 2024, Xu invested 16 million yuan (about 2.21 million U.S. dollars) to build a "plant factory" spanning 2.6 mu (0.17 hectares). The strawberries, originally grown in greenhouses, were relocated to a seven-story building, enabling year-round production.
Looking to the future, Xu and his team are planning to "replicate" the smart plant factory in the country's coastal cities, allowing more people to enjoy fresh agricultural products.
"I think that we are participating in the transformation of modern agriculture in China, which facilitates more 'new farmers' to engage in agriculture. This allows our consumers to enjoy more safe, healthy, delicious, and fresh fruits," he said.
"New farmer" establishes smart plant factory in Guizhou, innovating traditional agriculture
