Status, Existing Problems and Countermeasures of Industrialization of Se-enriched Agriculture in Guangxi

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1. College of Agronomy, Yulin Normal University, Yulin 537000, China; 2. Guangxi Xiyuan Moringa Co., Ltd., Nanning 530000, China; 3. Agricultural Resource and Environment Research Institute, Guangxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530007, China

1 Introduction

Se-enriched agriculture is a characteristic agriculture with high product quality and high economic added value. Although natural Se-enriched agricultural products have same production methods and production materials as ordinary agricultural products, they have higher economic value. Under the background of the growing demand from Chinese residents for food nutrition, development and utilization of Se resources, and development of Se industry are blooming in China. Guangxi should use its unique geographical environment to vigorously develop the Se-enriched industry, so as to promote regional agriculture transformation and development and regional economic development.

2 Development status

2.1Se-enrichedagriculturalproductsinGuangxiUnder the background of vigorously development Se-enriched agricultural products throughout China, a wide variety of Se-enriched agricultural products have been developed, Se-enriched rice, Se-enriched edible fungi, Se-enriched vegetables, Se-enriched banana, Se-enriched corn, Se-enriched wheat, Se-enriched honey, Se-enriched tea, Se-enriched vegetable (tea) oil, Se-enriched soybean, Se-enriched egg, and more than 40 kinds. On this basis, Guangxi also unearthed new natural Se-enriched agricultural products. Among the more than 300 crop varieties (peanut, jasmine, yam, fungus, litchi, sweet potato,etc.) collected from more than 30 counties (cities, districts) in the region, more than 70 crop varieties, such as ink rice, litchi, fungus and fructus momordicae have reached the standard of natural selenium enrichment, accounting for 24% of all the samples[1].

2.2Se-enrichedagriculturalproductionenterprisesMany enterprises in Guangxi have realized that in modern society, enterprises need to adapt to the needs of consumers. Only by better promoting the development of Se-enriched agricultural products can we achieve continuous improvement in the economic benefits of agriculture. Therefore, many enterprises in Guangxi actively participate in the development and sales of Se-enriched agricultural products. As of now, there are more than 230 companies that have registered Se-enriched products, including Guigang Tongda Rice Industry Factory, Guiping Xishan Bishui Tea Industry Co., Ltd., Guilin Yanxiang Rice Industry Co. Ltd and other Se-enriched food production and processing enterprises. After several years of continuous theoretical exploration and a summary of various experiences in practice, two business models of department + enterprise (cooperatives, family farms, large breeding households) and company + base + farmer that are suitable for the development of Se-enriched agriculture have been gradually formed. In recent years, 364 Se-enriched agricultural product demonstration bases with an area of 27 633.30 ha, output of 211 500 t, and output value of 2.745 billion yuan have been established in our district, and 177 products have been recognized as Se-enriched agricultural products, bringing benefits for more than 50 000 rural households[2]. In terms of standard certification work, by the end of 2016, 24 companies and 31 products have been successively obtained the certification qualification of Se-enriched agricultural products.

2.3AdvantagesofindustrialdevelopmentofSe-enrichedagricultureinGuangxiChina is large country lacking selenium. Insufficient intake of selenium has seriously affected the health of local residents. National soil survey shows that 72% of China’s territory is deficient in selenium and has very low selenium[3]. Guangxi is one of the rare Se-rich areas in China. According to the Geochemical Survey and Evaluation of Land Quality in the Region carried out jointly by the Department of Land and Resources of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and the Guangxi Bureau of Geology & Mineral Prospecting & Exploration from 2013 to 2016, the area of Se-rich arable land in the four cities of Nanning, Qinzhou, Beihai and Guigang located in the Beibu Gulf area and the surrounding areas was found to be about 2 120 800 ha[4]. Since the beginning of 2013, Guangxi Bureau of Geology & Mineral Prospecting & Exploration has carried out land quality geochemical survey and evaluation in 21 counties of Nanning City such as Wuming County, Heng County, Hepu County and Bobai County at the scale of 1∶50 000. A total of 278 666.70 ha of Se-enrich cultivated land has been circled, of which about 100 666.70 ha is high-quality Se-enriched cultivated land[5]. By the end of 2017, the region had completed the collection of 149 200 surface soil samples in 23 counties (cities, districts), and 1 600 000 ha of Se-enriched soil was newly discovered. Compared with other provinces, it could be found that the area of Se-enriched soil in Guangxi is the largest, endowing Guangxi unique conditions for the development of Se-enriched agriculture.

At the same time, Guangxi has been awarded as longevity in China since ancient times. The number of longevities in Guangxi accounts for 30% of the total in China[6]. According to survey and statistics, almost all of the longevities in Guangxi are located in the Se-enriched area. It is also generally recognized internationally that longevity elderly in Guangxi has an important relationship with local Se-enriched diets. Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region can develop Se-enriched agriculture and develop vigorously Se-enriched products by fully relying on its rich Se resources and featured fruit and vegetables, and build Se-enriched brands by making use of the good reputation of longevity.

3 Main problems

3.1Latestart,lackofvisibility,andconfusedmanagementofbrandsThe Se-enriched industry has been gradually becoming clearer and a large variety of Se-enriched products have been developed in other areas of China. However, the Se-rich soil in Guangxi was found relatively late, so the Se-enriched industry started later. This is mainly reflected in the lack of regional recognition, insufficient influence force of Se-enriched product brands, small-scale companies and cooperatives and low acceptance of Se-enriched products. In the China’s market, they have no obvious identification and market recognition. There is currently no well-known national brand in Guangxi. The chaotic phenomenon of Se-enriched brands in the same area will directly lead to user diversion, making consumers incapable of identifying.

3.2MoreandcomplexstandardsystemsforSe-enrichedproductsThe Se-enriched product standard system in Guangxi is not comprehensive and systematic, and the implementation effect is poor. In recent years, Guangxi has formulated more than 120 selenium enrichment local standards at the regional and municipal levels as the basis for guiding the development of Se-enriched industry in Guangxi. Many companies have also established corporate standards based on local standards. A Se-enriched product standard system has been basically established in Guangxi. Compared with other regions, Guangxi has unique advantages in terms of the number of standards formulated and the advance of some standards. But at the same time, many shortcomings have been exposed: the feature of natural selenium enrichment is not prominent; the products covered by the basic classification criteria are not comprehensive enough; the Se content is not accurate enough; and Se-enriched products are lacking in grading standards. These all hinder the sustainable and healthy development of the industry.

3.3InsufficientscaleofSe-enrichedindustrySe-enriched agriculture in Guangxi has only been developed in recent years, and the foundation for development in all aspects is not yet stable. The number of Se-enriched agricultural production enterprises and the scale of related industries in Guangxi are not very large. In particular, the cultivation performance of some Se-enriched agricultural products is still difficult to meet the expected development goals. Overall, the development of industrialization of Se-enriched agriculture in Guangxi is still in a relatively elementary stage, and it cannot get rid of the constraints of small scale and lack of competitiveness. In addition, the number of Se-enriched agricultural processing enterprises in Guangxi and their industrial scale are also small.

3.4LowtechnologyleveloffarmersSe-enriched agricultural products have higher requirements for their living environment. If there is insufficient investment in technology, it is difficult to meet the demand for Se-enriched agricultural products in the process of market development. Due to the lack of relevant technical support, farmers have to constantly absorb and improve relevant planting experience in the planting process of Se-enriched agricultural products. However, there are still a series of problems such as low production level and low technical content. The poor display of the selenium enrichment advantage in Guangxi has resulted in low competitiveness of Se-enriched agricultural products in the market. They cannot compete with the Se-enriched agricultural products in other areas of China and are easy to lose the market.

3.5SinglemarketingstrategyAt present, in view of the fact that China does not have a unified standard for production, processing, testing and supervision of Se-enriched products, consumers’ confidence in the quality, nutrition, effectiveness and safety of Se-enriched agricultural products is low. The slow progress of target market expansion makes it difficult to quickly create a mature marketing system. In addition, there are no professional marketing personnel for Se-enriched agricultural products, and specialized marketing companies do not target Se-enriched agricultural products. Guangxi’s Se-enriched industry, whose foundation is not sufficiently strong, is unable to fight against the impact of mature products, and its sales and promotion methods are immature. The difficult market opening has become the primary constraint to the development of Se-enriched enterprises.

4 Countermeasures

4.1FormulatingasystematicplanningforSe-enrichedindustryinGuangxiandcultivatingnewtypesofentitiestoextendtheindustrialchainThe development of Se-enriched industry in Guangxi should follow the principles of adapting to local conditions, rational planning, and complementary advantages. The newly established Se-enriched industrial zones will be re-planned and rationally laid out. In combination with existing conditions, the industries with good basic conditions, solid production technology and a relatively large profit margin will be developed first. In addition, relying on Guangxi’s own regional advantages, the pastoral landscape, pond water bodies, fruit and vegetables, farming culture and farmer’s life formed by Se-enriched bases can be integrated into the development of the tourism industry, providing visitors with rural cultural activities such as sightseeing, vacation and experience. At the same time of extending the industrial chain, new sales channels are increased, and good publicity is achieved, which play a key role in establishing a brand image for the base, increasing market awareness, enabling related companies to increase the turnover rate of funds and providing financial guarantee for expanding scale and improving product quality.

4.2StrengtheningscientificresearchtoprovidesupportforthedevelopmentofSe-enrichedagricultureScientific research is the driving force behind the sustainable development of the industry. Relying on research institutes, colleges and universities and other scientific research institutions within and outside the autonomous region, academic discussions can be organized targeting Se-enriched soil and crops in the region. Research projects will be conducted jointly with screening Se-enriched crops, improving the quality of Se-enriched products and protecting the health of residents as goals. Breeding excellent varieties, developing new Se-enriched fertilizers, developing supporting technology, excavating deep-processing technology and health care functions of Se-enriched products,etc. need to be carried out.

4.3ImprovingthestandardsystemforSe-enrichedagriculturalproductsThe quality of products is the most concern for consumers and is the most crucial factor in the development of Se-enriched agriculture. The key to improving quality is to ensure the original quality of Se-enriched agricultural products. First, Se-enriched resources and Se-enriched products inspection and testing center can be established. Second, in the development of Se-enriched agriculture in the region, technical process for production of Se-enriched agricultural products should be prepared scientifically according to Se level in Se-enriched soil and specific crop. The standardization from technology to operation should be fully implemented to ensure the quality of Se-enriched agricultural products. The standards for the processing of Se-enriched agricultural products also need to be formulated to ensure the quality in the processing links. Third, according to theGuangxiSelenium-richAgriculturalProductsCertificationManagementMeasuresand other related supporting documents, the efforts to identify Se-enriched agricultural products can be increased; the production standards and quality certification of Se-enriched agricultural products can be unified; the inspection of counterfeited Se-enriched products shall be strengthened to create the overall image of the high-quality Se-enriched products in the autonomous region.

4.4BuildingleadingenterprisesandstrengtheningbaseconstructiontopromotethedevelopmentofSe-enrichedagriculturalindustrializationthroughradiationIn response to the problems of small production scale, weak vitality and serious product homogeneity, the government can build leading enterprises hierarchically relying on abundant Se-rich soil resources and featured agricultural biological resource in the region. First, selenium enrichment demonstration bases with outstanding characteristics and obvious agglomeration effects can be constructed. A diversified investment system that constitutes government funds (as a guide), social funds (as the main body) and local farmers’ shares will be created. This will promote the improvement of transportation, water conservancy and other infrastructure facilities for local Se-enriched industry, effectively solve the problem of land circulation and promote the efficient transfer of land regulations. Based on the existing crop resources in the region, scientific allocation will be carried out to make sure that planning will be a success. Second, leading cooperatives and enterprises with complete product supply chain, broad radiation range and strong driving ability, especially related deep processing companies will be built.

4.5StrengthenthebuildingofSe-enrichedbrandsThe popularity and reputation of products are the necessary conditions for enhancing the competitiveness of the brand, and they are inseparable from effective publicity. Building brands requires high costs and long time, and the desired effect will be achieved after a long time. This is also one of the major constraints to the establishment of Se-enriched agricultural product brands in China. Regional brand operation and management model in which the government is leading, the associations is the intermediary and enterprises are the participants will be adopted. There is a positive correlation between soil Se content and life span. The Se-enriched agricultural product brands with strong competitiveness that integrate regional brand, corporate brand and commodity brand will be built. Measures will be taken promptly against the bad behaviors that hinder the selenium enrichment development strategy. The certification qualification of cooperatives and enterprises with poor credit records for Se-enriched products will be limited to promote the healthy development of companies. At the same time, a quality and safety traceability system needs to be established for Se-enriched agricultural products. From the base to the end consumer, safety supervision will be implemented for all aspects to create truly safe Se-enriched brands.

4.6PromotingpromotionaleffortsandinnovatingmarketingmodelsIn addition to relying on traditional marketing methods, Se-enriched agricultural products in Guangxi can develop new marketing models based on their own unique advantages. First, the advantages of rich Se resources and tourism resources in Guangxi can be fully displayed. The government helps enterprises to do a good job in the production-company-market docking to promote the development of agriculture and tourism through developing industry and fully realize the development of rural primary, secondary and tertiary industries. Second, a community-based agricultural order production method will be developed, and producer, operator and consumer are organized as a community. Third, the mode of Internet + Agriculture will be advanced.

While setting up domestic sales channels, companies should also take the long view and focus on the needs of the international market. The timely development of foreign markets will enable local Se-enriched agricultural products of geographical indication to go abroad.

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