Digital Economy Empowers Modern Agriculture: Datong County Blazes New Path for Rural Revitalization
In recent years, Datong Hui and Tu Autonomous County, Xining City, Qinghai Province, has deeply empowered modern agriculture with the digital economy, driving green production, brand building and industrial integration. It has explored a new path for rural revitalization that promotes the income increase of people of all ethnic groups and the integrated development of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries through digitalization.
Leveraging digital means, the county has injected "intelligent genes" into traditional agriculture and animal husbandry. With the help of "four agricultural conditions" monitoring points and the Internet of Things technology, it has implemented precise and grid-based management over 230,000 mu of rapeseed green high-yield and high-efficiency action areas and 34 demonstration bases, realizing intelligent control and full coverage of green technologies such as integrated water and fertilizer management and reduction of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. People’s Network reports that China’s first Tencent Digital Village Innovation Base has settled in Datong, with 100,000 yaks and 88,000 Tibetan sheep realizing origin traceability, and all-weather coverage of agricultural "four conditions" monitoring.
Through the "Datong Hao" agricultural, cultural and tourism integrated digital platform, a full-process traceability system for agricultural products from pastures to dining tables has been established, strongly supporting the certification and management of 750,000 mu of organic pastures and 22 organic foods. This has made "green and organic" a reliable label for Datong’s agricultural products and a solid foundation for increasing the income of people of all ethnic groups.
Taking digital marketing and traceability systems as the two wings, Datong County has made every effort to build a digital brand matrix of "public brand + enterprise brand". It has unified the product standards and image of regional public brands such as "Laoye Mountain" vegetables through digital platforms. By organizing participation in online marketing of the "Qinghai Super League" and digital promotion activities in other regions, it has more accurately and extensively promoted 45 enterprise brands including "Ayeshen" yak meat and 72 "two products and one label" agricultural products to the market.
Notably, through the digital production and marketing docking mechanism, it has successfully supplied more than 2,200 tons of cool vegetables to the Hong Kong market stably, enabling the "flavor of Datong" to enter the high-end market through digital channels. China News Network states that Datong has built a 9,311-mu high-standard cool vegetable supply base for Hong Kong, with 81 green, organic and geographical indication agricultural products certified.
Furthermore, the county actively promotes the in-depth integration of the digital economy with real industries to build a modern agricultural industrial system. It has cultivated 56 leading agricultural industrialization enterprises and 37 socialized trusteeship service organizations through "internal cultivation, external introduction and policy support". By introducing technical cooperation from Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, building 10 primary processing production lines and 34,800-ton cold chain facilities, it has developed a series of yak meat products and cultural and creative products.
Ma Yuxia, an agricultural technician from Datong County Agriculture and Rural Bureau, said that the digital interest linkage mechanism of "enterprise + cooperative + farmer" has closely integrated people of all ethnic groups into the industrial chain, allowing them to share the value-added benefits from processing, circulation, tourism and other links. The digital empowerment has not only boosted agricultural efficiency but also laid a solid foundation for the common prosperity of people of all ethnic groups in Datong County.
