Shanghai wants to set up 1,333 hectares of fully automated farmland by the end of 2025, according to a recently announced plan. Automated farms are gaining traction in China, which wants to eliminate the human element by using advanced technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data and robotics.

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Operating a drone to spray pesticides on farmland in Huichang, Jiangxi Province. Photo: China Daily

Shanghai’s plan will start with 800 hectares of smart farms in eight towns by the end of this year and complete the rest by the end of next year. The unmanned farms will be equipped with smart tractors, planters, smart sprayers, drones and combine harvesters. A central cloud platform will manage and analyze data to maintain operations.

If judged successful, the projects will receive a reward of 700,000 yuan (US$115,000) per 66.67 hectares from the city government and will be eligible for additional rewards from the district.

Shanghai's proposal comes amid a trend for the nation of 1.4 billion people to reshape its agricultural system and increase efficiency to ensure food security, an issue Beijing has made a priority as trade uncertainty grows.

China's vision for modern agriculture is to let "livestock retire, 'iron cattle' work" as "farmers live in cities and professionals stay to farm," agricultural engineer Luo Xiwen from the Chinese Academy of Engineering told Outlook Weekly .

While rice production has tripled in the past 70 years, Beijing lags behind advanced agricultural economies in other staple crops such as corn and soybeans. Officials say yields of both crops are only about 60 percent of those grown in the United States.

Agricultural aviation – which involves the use of unmanned vehicles in agriculture – also “faces challenges in standards, regulations, core research and development,” according to Luo. “There is still a long way to go.”

Shanghai achieved the highest land use efficiency in the country in grain production, averaging 534kg per mu (1 mu = 0.07 ha) in 2023, according to data from the Shanghai Commission of Economy and Information Technology.

Other localities are also exploring their own pilot programs. Heilongjiang, for example, aims to establish 20 large-scale unmanned farms by 2025.

(According to SCMP, Outlook Weekly)