High-tech farm automates vegetable planting, harvest in China's Zhejiang

The rainbow of vegetables on your salad plate might have been grown right here at a smart agriculture demonstration park in Deqing County of east China’s Zhejiang Province without a single human hand ever touching it.

Using cutting-edge technology, the park integrates AI with the Internet of Things to manage every step of crop production, from lettuce to arugula, with full-process smart control.

"This is an auto-transplanting machine that we’ve developed by ourselves. It is designed to replace manual labor in the transplanting process. In just 40 seconds, it can transplant 30 vegetable seedlings, boosting efficiency by over 70 percent. Along with automated transportation lines, cleaning machines, and our greenhouse environment control system, we’ve created a fully unmanned operation," said Hu Yaofeng, technical manager of Zhejiang Houji Intelligent Technology.

Researchers say these crops are free from pesticides and heavy metals, and yield five to seven times more than traditional open-field farming.

"These are Arugula seedlings. They can be transplanted in about 15 days of cultivation. As you can see, we have already had mature sesame plants outside that have been transplanted. These plants are usually ready for harvest in 25 to 30 days. After harvesting, we sell them to companies like Freshippo and Yum! Brands," Hu said.

From farm to shelf in record time, this high-tech harvest is supplying some of China’s biggest retailers and showcasing the future of agriculture.

It’s one the most important innovations on how China’s technology is driving the modernization of agriculture. And the goal is to deliver safer, healthier vegetables directly to your table.

High-tech farm automates vegetable planting, harvest in China's Zhejiang

High-tech farm automates vegetable planting, harvest in China's Zhejiang

The multilateral system is "under attack" amid global turmoil, President of the 80th UN General Assembly Annalena Baerbock warned in her remarks on Wednesday.

In her briefing on the priorities for the resumed 80th Session of the General Assembly, the UNGA president noted that the current multilateral system does not collapse all in a sudden, but "crumbles piece by piece" in divisions, compromises, and lack of political commitment.

The president called all the UN member states to defend the UN Charter and international law and promote cross-regional cooperation.

She also urged to push forward the work of the UNGA on certain critical issues with a strong majority, rather than an absolute consensus among all member states. Such act is not a failure of multilateralism, but "an affirmation of it," she said.

The foundational principles of the institution should not be eroded by appeasement, she said, calling the member states to show courage, leadership, and responsibility at the UN's "critical make-or-break moment."

"The UN needs you. Your support, your leadership, your principle, stand, your cross-regional cooperation, if we are to preserve and modernize this institution, if we are to make it, rather than break it," she said.

UNGA President warns global multilateral system "under attack"