Australia is an important country along the Silk Road in the 21st century and an important economic and trade partner of China. Australia’s agriculture occupies an important position in the national economy. More than 60% of agricultural products supply the international market, and China has become Australia’s largest overseas market for agricultural products. People in the industry believe that since the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement officially entered into force in 2015, mutual investment in the agricultural sector by both companies has continued to increase, and the prospects for agricultural technology cooperation are very promising. The
Modern agricultural technology attracts the attention of enterprises
Under the blue sky and white clouds, crowds of cattle and sheep graze leisurely in the pasture. Although there is no one in the air, these animals are very “regular,” and the field of activity will never exceed a certain range. This is the Australian Agricultural Food Innovation Summit held in Melbourne, Australia, where Australian agricultural experts presented virtual fence technology to the guests present.
The event was sponsored by the Australian China Investor Center and the Australia-China Entrepreneurs Dialogue Organization. At the same time, it was supported by the Australian Federal Trade and Investment Commission, the Victorian Government, and other authorities, aiming to showcase the latest Australian agricultural technology to Chinese companies. Research results. The National Agricultural Association of Australia and some professional associations, major agricultural enterprises in Australia, and dozens of Chinese companies such as Alibaba, COFCO, Mengniu and Yili attended the meeting.
During the meeting, Australian agricultural science and technology personnel also demonstrated about 20 high-tech agricultural technologies such as healthy cereals, functional foods, sprayed liquid agricultural films, simultaneous fertilizer slow-release technology, and the use of genetic technology to cultivate high-energy forages. Chairman of the Australian China Investor Center Ma He’an said in an interview with this reporter: “The largest industrial giants in Australia’s agricultural sector are all present, indicating that the local industry is full of expectations for China-Australia agricultural cooperation and is very optimistic about the prospects of China’s agricultural products market.” In addition to investing in Australian farms and ranches, there are many areas in which Chinese companies can invest in Australia. China-Australia’s cooperation in the agricultural field has a very broad prospect.
Some participating Chinese companies showed great interest in Australian agricultural technology. On the same day, the Shanghai Modern Agricultural Technology Promotion Center and the Australian China Investor Center held a strategic signing ceremony, based on the introduction of Australia’s top agricultural technology to improve China’s agricultural environment.
Timothy Perl, CEO of the Australia Agriculture Association, told this reporter that modern agriculture is undergoing tremendous changes and it is increasingly dependent on the Internet, global positioning system and genetic technology. Australia and China have their own strengths in the field of agriculture. The agricultural cooperation between the two countries should go beyond the traditional import and export of crops and learn from each other in the various production stages to achieve mutual complementarity. Parrow believes that Australia’s current agricultural production capacity is limited, and the government should increase investment in agricultural infrastructure, otherwise it may lose to rivals in the fierce international competition.
Most farms in Australia are still in the stage of family-centered small-scale peasant economy, and the proportion of large-scale intensive operations is very small. Since many small farms are faced with no successors, this provides foreign investors with investment opportunities for the intensive management of small farms.
Mutual benefit and win-win results in huge potential for cooperation
In recent years, especially since the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement came into effect, a large number of high-quality Australian agricultural products have been exported to China, and Chinese agricultural companies have invested in Australia. The two sides have complementary advantages in the agricultural field and the cooperation has great potential.
As a private enterprise in Zhejiang Province of China, the Japanese-Italian holding group acquired Black Forest Ranch in the western part of Victoria in March 2014. Currently, the Group has owned nearly 40,000 hectares of farms in Australia, and in addition to planting cash crops, Beef cattle breeding. Xu Xinming, chief representative of Japan Development Group, said in an interview with this reporter that the number of beef cattle owned by the group has grown from the initial 1000 to more than 20,000, and it is still in the stage of expansion. At present, the company has established a domestic sales company and e-commerce platform to import beef from Australia to China, and successfully put into operation, opening the domestic market, so that Chinese consumers can enjoy authentic Australian high-quality beef without leaving home.
At the same time, Australian companies are also working hard to expand the Chinese market. The Reed family began fruit farming in Tasmania in 1856, 160 years ago. Tim Reid, head of Reed Fruit Industry, told this reporter: “China has become our most important market. This year, 70% of the cherries we produce are sold in China.”
(Source: ACB News “Australia Finance Online”)