Industrial Cluster: "Hard Technology" Behind A Cotton In Changji Agricultural High Tech Zone

In autumn October, in the Laolonghe ten thousand mu cotton field of Changji National Agricultural High tech Industry Demonstration Zone (hereinafter referred to as "Changji Agricultural High tech Zone"), large-scale cotton pickers roared through the fields, turning cotton into "egg roll cotton". From one cotton plant to one roll of cotton bales, one picker has been completed, and the comprehensive mechanized cotton recovery rate in Changji Agricultural High tech Zone has reached 100%.

Cotton is the second largest crop after grain. The cotton produced in Xinjiang accounts for 90% of the national total and one fifth of the world's cotton output. In Changji Agricultural High tech Zone, cotton is one of the local main industries. Changji Agricultural High tech Zone, in line with local conditions, comprehensively promotes precision agricultural technologies such as precision sowing, precision fertilization, precision irrigation, precision harvesting, and precision monitoring. Through technology leadership, it improves the level of agricultural science and technology. The cotton fields bear "technology flowers", enabling the cotton industry to "add flowers to the brocade".

　　 High quality cotton can be produced by good seed matching method

At the beginning of October, Changji Agricultural High tech Zone ushered in the busiest season of the year. A set of baled cotton pickers shuttled in the white "cotton sea", collecting the achievements of cotton farmers for a year.

Within 48 hours of cotton picker operation, the 1300 mu cotton field of Gao Kehu's family, a cotton grower in Laolonghe, Changji High Agricultural Zone, was harvested. He was relieved after a busy year.

Gao Kehu, 37, is an old hand with 10 years of cotton planting experience. A few years ago, one of his biggest headaches was seed selection. In 2019, he planted all 1300 mu of land with "Zhongmian 113" under the recommendation of the relevant person in charge of Changji Agricultural High tech Zone. This cotton variety is not only high yield but also high quality, and its selling price is also high. "The yield of 'Zhongmian 113' has reached more than 500 kilograms per mu, the quality has reached 'Double 30', and the selling price is two or three hundred yuan per ton higher than that of ordinary varieties of seed cotton," said Gao Kehu.

In order to serve the high-quality development of agriculture, with the support of the autonomous region and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, in September 2017, the Western Agricultural Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences was founded in Changji Agricultural High tech Zone. Scientific researchers traveled westward all the way to help Xinjiang cotton high-quality development with scientific and technological services.

The key to the high quality of cotton lies in good varieties. Relying on the national science and technology platforms such as the Western Agricultural Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the Cotton Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and the National Cotton Industry Alliance, Changji Agricultural High tech Zone will adopt the "one plant, one product" model from 2022, mainly promote two cotton seeds, "Zhongmian 113" and "Xinlu Zao 57", establish a 100000 mu high-quality cotton production base, and adopt the single seed, single harvest, single rolling, and single storage, High quality and good price ensure quality. This year, the average yield of cotton per mu of 100000 mu in Changji Agricultural High tech Zone is about 419 kg, and the maximum yield per mu is 523 kg.

In the innovation laboratory of Jiushenghe Seed Industry Co., Ltd., researchers are conducting cultivation tests on cotton seeds. It is reported that the enterprise has cultivated and managed 24 cotton varieties, basically covering the main cotton planting areas in the north and south of Xinjiang. Jiang Hui, general manager of Jiushenghe Cotton Research Institute, said, "Some of our cotton varieties have achieved effective polymerization of high yield, high quality and adaptability in terms of high yield, stress resistance stability and excellent quality, and have overcome the major production problem of the shortage of machine picked cotton varieties."

Wang Xin, director of the Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Bureau of Changji Agricultural High tech Zone, said that the average yield of "Zhongmian 113" increased by about 107 kg per mu compared with the original main varieties. At the same time, the raw cotton quality of "Zhongmian 113" is above "Shuang 30". In terms of lint percentage, the lint percentage of "Zhongmian 113" is about 45%, 3 to 5 percentage points higher than other varieties, and the economic benefit per mu is increased by more than 900 yuan.

　　 R&D and adoption of new high-yield and high-efficiency cultivation technology

In April this year, in Changji Agricultural High tech Zone, the use of Beidou navigation unmanned automatic film laying seeder made it easy to achieve straight sowing and accurate distance between cotton rows. In recent years, Changji Agricultural High tech Zone has developed and adopted a series of new high-yield and high-efficiency cultivation technologies, including Beidou navigation precision sowing, drip irrigation under film, water and fertilizer operation, mechanized harvesting, etc.

When entering Manas National Digital Planting Innovation and Application Base (cotton), the field meteorological station, pest monitoring station, moisture content station and video monitoring equipment are available. Xinjiang Huier Zhilian Technology Co., Ltd. uses advanced technologies such as intelligent agricultural machinery operation, "intelligent water and fertilizer integration", and high-resolution satellite remote sensing to provide auxiliary decision-making for cotton planting in the 30000 mu sky land integration smart farm.

In 2023, with the help of Xinjiang Huier Zhilian Technology Co., Ltd., 300000 mu of high standard farmland in Manas County will be upgraded in digital technology. Now, with the "smart water fertilizer integration", farmers can complete irrigation and fertilization operations through remote control of mobile APP.

Song Meizhen is the first scientific research team leader who took over the task after the establishment of the Western Agricultural Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and went to Xinjiang from the Henan Cotton Research Institute. By September this year, she had traveled to all cotton producing regions in Xinjiang. When the reporter saw Song Meizhen, she had just returned from a business trip. She was over sixty years old and was carrying a huge backpack, which was filled with collected cotton. "Our task is to solve the key technical problems affecting Xinjiang cotton production and promote the high-quality development of Xinjiang cotton industry," said Song Meizhen.

In August this year, the "wide, early and excellent" cotton planting technology led by the Cotton Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences passed the expert achievement evaluation organized by the Chinese Agricultural Society. "Wide, early and excellent" cotton planting technology achieves reasonable canopy structure distribution, even boll distribution, more than 30% increase in boll space, more than 10% increase in boll rate and boll weight, and more than 10% increase in per unit yield through expanding row spacing, reducing density, and increasing plant height. At present, the total demonstration and promotion in the south and north Xinjiang has exceeded 40 million mu, and the new cotton planting benefit has exceeded 22 billion yuan.

　　 "5 Billion" Industry Developed from One Cotton

In recent days, tractors pulling "egg roll cotton" have formed a long queue in front of the gate of Laolonghe Ginning Plant of Changji Cotton Co., Ltd. of China Cotton Group. A "egg roll cotton" weighs more than two tons. Sampling, testing, pumping and unloading are a busy scene. "We plan to collect and store 30000 tons of seed cotton this year, and it is estimated that the processing volume of lint will reach more than 11000 tons. At present, the purchasing volume of seed cotton is about 1000 tons every day, and the processing volume of lint is about 400 tons to 500 tons every day." Wei Bin, head of Laolonghe Ginning Plant of China Cotton Group Changji Cotton Co., Ltd., introduced.

On the goods yard of the ginning plant, each package of processed lint has a traceability identification code. Scanning the code can obtain information such as the processing manufacturer, production date, quality grade, etc., so as to achieve traceability from seed cotton to lint.

Changji Agricultural High tech Zone is one of the main production areas of high-quality cotton in Changji Prefecture, and the centralized collection and sale period of cotton is from October to December every year. The annual production cycle of 4 ginning plants in Changji Agricultural High tech Zone can handle 120000 tons of seed cotton. Since October 9, four ginning plants have started weighing at the same time, and they like to receive new cotton. At present, they have purchased 55400 tons of seed cotton.

Xinjiang Taikun Protein Technology Co., Ltd., located in Changji Agricultural High tech Zone, takes cottonseed as raw material, and can derive various products such as cottonseed protein, cottonseed meal, cottonseed oil, cottonseed hull, cotton linter, etc. through multiple processes of fine and deep processing. Han Yuanguang, the general manager of the company, introduced that the company has built six processing bases in Changji, Wujiaqu, Alar, Kuitun, Wusu and Kashi, relying on Xinjiang's rich cottonseed resources, with an annual processing capacity of 900000 tons of cottonseed.

At present, Changji Agricultural High tech Zone focuses on extending and strengthening the chain, accelerating the construction of cotton, textile and clothing industry clusters, and actively expanding the space for industrial development. Changji Agricultural High tech Zone recently signed a cooperation agreement with Guangdong Yunsha Holding Co., Ltd. to build a whole industry chain of "scientific research - production - processing - circulation - textile - clothing - trade".

Changji Agricultural High tech Zone will build a 5 billion yuan industrial cluster of cotton textile and clothing, and the realization of extending and strengthening the chain is accelerating. Here, in the process of cotton growing from one seed, one seedling, one cotton to one thread, one piece of cloth, and one piece of clothing, a win-win situation has gradually formed, which can increase the income of cotton farmers, increase the efficiency of cotton industry, and benefit textile industry.

(Source: Xinhuanet)