New standards for pesticide QR codes, and free-range chickens can become internet celebrities too
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"Everything Makes Sense"China National Radio Rural Service, Host/Editor: Gao Fan
Hello friends, it's time once again to sort through the week's agricultural and economic news, big and small. "Outsiders watch the excitement, insiders watch the craft."This week, what "big news" in the agricultural economy is worth paying attention to? Let's hear Gao Fan talk it over with you, and step into today's "Everything Makes Sense" together.
Lately I don't carry a wallet much when I go out, because in many places you can pay by scanning a QR code with your phone. It's convenient and fast, and worth promoting.Recently, the group standard "QR Code Encoding Rules for Pesticide Products" was officially released. This is China's first QR code standard for a pesticide product traceability system.
When it comes to farming these days, you really can't completely avoid pesticides. Although we advocate "zero growth" in pesticide use, sometimes we also have to show "zero tolerance" toward pests. But the premise is that we have to use genuine, low-toxicity, high-quality pesticides. So here comes the problem: the pesticide world also has real deals and impostors. How do you tell proper pesticides from fakes? Someone thought of it: give pesticides a QR code.You see, QR codes can not only help you spend money, but also save you from wasting money. But there is also a problem: the industry has no unified standard for creating QR codes; the information format on each QR code is not uniform, and none are compatible with each other; to match them, some pesticide stores even have to keep a dozen or so barcode scanners around. That... uses a lot of electricity.
Now with this unified standard, it is helpful for establishing a QR code traceability system from the source of production, connecting the "information islands" between different pesticide brands, forming a big database, and providing farmers and consumers with a traceability channel.We all know that in ancient times, after Qin Shi Huang standardized writing and cart axle widths, the country became stronger and stronger; now with "codes following the same rules," the industry can develop better, and farmers' interests can be better protected.
If you want to know what's hottest online now, it's livestreaming. There are many livestreaming platforms alone, like Huajiao, Douyu, Huya... they all sound pretty tasty. Where there is livestreaming, "internet celebrities" appear; once there are internet celebrities, the "internet celebrity economy" is born, and money can be made.So what does that have to do with us farmers? Actually, internet celebrities are not only "fair-skinned, beautiful, with long legs"; there are also "free-range chickens, honey, and little lamb legs." These specialty agricultural products can also become "village celebrities" in the online world.Recently, Taobao held China's first-ever livestream of specialty agricultural products in Chongqing. They set up several livestreaming points in local rural areas, and farmers from miles around could bring their own local specialties to "market"; at the other end of the video, consumers could choose freely through the livestream, and even see the process of collection and production. The selected products would be given a unique identification code and delivered to your home by courier.This video livestreaming and sales promotion worked together, and the effect was really good: that day the peak popularity of the livestream exceeded 100,000 people, and free-range eggs alone sold more than 100,000.You see, through the hottest "online livestreaming" right now, consumers far away in the city can intuitively see the good things in our villages, buying with confidence and convenience; farmers can also use it to open up a bigger market, selling with sincerity and popularity. Isn't this a win-win?So who says farming can't be "stylish"? "Farmers livestream, free-range chickens become internet celebrities." New technologies and new models create new opportunities for increasing farmers' income.
Finally, a reminder: June 5 is World Environment Day. Right now "garbage surrounding villages, straw burning, water source pollution" and so on are all problems, affecting both daily life and restricting production.Let's each contribute a little more to protecting the environment. After all, only by preserving "green mountains and clear waters" is it possible to exchange them for "mountains of gold and silver."
Okay, that's it for today's "Everything Makes Sense" with Gao Fan.