State government will back Baijiao sea bass farming

Beijing will finance modern agricultural production in Baijiao Town now that the pillar sea bass industry has made the 2019 list of National Agriculturally Powerful Pilot Town Projects.

Baijiao is home to six leading enterprises that specialize in agricultural industrialization, the most in Zhuhai. This is at or above the municipal level.

Qualifying the town for the listing, China's Land of Sea Bass in Doumen District yielded agricultural output value of 3.1 billion yuan ($441 million) in 2018. Its growing rural industry has a healthy industry chain ranging from breeding to processing, leisure, and rural sightseeing. The ratio of output value of product processing to agricultural output value is 4:13. 

Baijiao Town [Photo courtesy WeChat ID: westerncentrecity]

Such achievements are precisely what the ministries of Agriculture & Rural Affairs and Finance, initiators of the program, look for. Development of the National Agriculturally Powerful Pilot Town Projects began in 2018, supporting an expanding range of advantageous industries across the country.

According to a local official, Baijiao also has a high-standard agricultural product quality and safety management system. Most agricultural products are designated pollution-free, green, or organic with some even sporting Agro-Product Geographical Indications.

Furthermore, giant agricultural enterprises, farmer cooperatives, and other new business entities have a close-knit linkage with farmers, which has led to the per capita disposable income of rural residents in Baijiao being more than 10 percent higher than average.

The designation is hailed to bring funds from the central government that will spur the rural economy, promote industrial integration, and support a modern agricultural production system.