Photo shows a joyful farmer looking at a Yulu fragrant pear in Xi County of Shanxi Province, north China.
BEIJING, Jan. 21 (Xinhua Silk Road) -- With a click on their cellphone screens, fruit farmers in Xi County, north China's Shanxi Province can finish irrigating and fertilizing their Yulu fragrant pear orchards, which is nothing but a common sight there.
Famed for its time-honored pear tree plantation history and superior pear taste, the Chinese county has been proactively embracing digital technologies to further enliven the local fragrant pear industry.
Thanks to the "Xi County Digital Village", a cloud platform, the county in the heartland of Loess Plateau that boasts all the growth conditions required for quality Yulu fragrant pears, did not need to worry about arduous irrigation and fertilizing work any more.
Smart orchard controlling and distribution systems were also employed by the county to digitize related management to better preserve pear taste, which outruns others due to its pear-friendly high altitude, sufficient sunshine, big day-night temperature differences and unique geological environment.
In Xi County's digital village demonstration hall, 100-plus indicators about Yulu fragrant pear planting, e-commerce sales, etc. are showcased on a large screen for real-time monitoring, trend analysis and risk warning.
Via connections with meteorological data sources, Internet of Things-based sensing equipment and integrated water and fertilizer devices, the smart orchard controlling systems enable more scientific pear tree planting and management.
Elsewhere in a temperature-controlled distribution center in Zhaizi Town, similar systems help locals realize intelligent management of Yulu fragrant pear-related warehouse entry, sorting and packaging, outbound delivery, and environment monitoring.
Under such circumstances, every Yulu fragrant pear has its own QR code-based identity code, making them completely transparent to consumers from picking in orchards to service on dinning tables.
Among fruit farmers of Xi County, there is a saying which goes "Not all fragrant pears can be named as Yulu fragrant pears" and behind its reputation lie not only the county's natural conditions but also efforts to develop pear-based syrup, wine and beverage products and foster local e-commerce.
Such supreme habitats and endeavors speak for the premium quality of Yulu fragrant pears of Xi County, which now produces 35 million kilos of fragrant pears annually and exports local pears to multiple overseas markets such as the U.S., Canada, the UAE, and Australia.
(Edited by Duan Jing with Xinhua Silk Road, duanjing@xinhua.org)
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