On April 27, an academic salon was held in HZAU with the theme of “Combination of Planting and Breeding-Exploration of Green and Low-carbon Agriculture Model”. Professor He Ke from College of Economics & Management shared the development history and current situation of green and low-carbon agriculture.
Prof. He first outlined the broad concept of green and low-carbon agriculture to students, namely the high-level carbon balance that was empowered by the ecological civilization thought and the multi-market trading system. Later, he led the students to review the theoretical evolution of green and low-carbon agriculture. Prof. He said: “In the traditional agriculture period, green and low-carbon agriculture is at a low-level carbon balance due to the constraints of traditional ecological wisdom and limited market, focusing on its efficiency in a one-sided manner. With the development and utilization of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, green agriculture has entered the production phase of petroleum agriculture. Farming civilization has transformed towards industrial civilization, but it has also caused carbon imbalance.” Therefore, to solve the problem of carbon imbalance, many researchers have come up with suggestions. The combination of planting and breeding is one of the ecological agriculture models that can help the development of green and low-carbon agriculture. It can promote the conversion of matter and energy between animals and plants by closely combining planting and breeding. Prof. He also noted that this new model can boost the circular agriculture, which can help transform agricultural development mode, promote agricultural circular economy, improve agricultural competitiveness and govern agricultural ecological environment.
Students ask questions in Q & A session. ( Hu Yue/photo)
Prof. He introduced several new modes of planting and breeding combination in recent years: “pig-biogas-fruit”, “mulberry ranches-black fungus-rice”, “chicken-vegetable-rice”, “fish-mulberry-chicken”, “shrimp-rice” and etc. The students’ curiosity was then piqued, inciting an enthusiastic outpouring of questions.
“What aspects be evaluated to determine the effectiveness of an agricultural model for planting and breeding?” asked Zhao Yaqin, a student from College of Economics & Management. In response, Prof. He noted that whether the combination of planting and breeding is useful or not requires comprehensive consideration, especially its contributions to the environment, society and farmers. Therefore, we mainly evaluate from three aspects: economy, ecological environment and social benefits. The exploration of the eco-agriculture model remains an ongoing endeavor. According to Prof. He, there is a steadfast belief in the emergence of future models that prioritize resource conservation and environmental friendliness.
Wu Zhenyu, a student from College of Resources & Environment, asked: “What contribution does the combination of planting and breeding make to the dual-carbon goal?” Prof. He responded by highlighting that the dual-carbon goal, encompassing carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, primarily focuses on reducing industrial emissions rather than emphasizing agricultural emissions. However, the combination of planting and breeding can effectively reduce emissions and promote carbon cycle at agricultural level. Also, it can help achieve the dual-carbon goal to a certain extent. Then, Wu Zhenyu raised another question: “How can we choose the most suitable combination mode of planting and breeding in different regions?”. Prof. He responded: “First, the selection process should be based on an evaluation of the local leading industries and available resources. While implying this model, we should consider the safety factors, making sure the local food supply is in abundance.” Taking the combination mode of planting and breeding in Qianjiang, Hubei Province as an example, Prof. He noted that Qianjiang, a city with a long tradition of breeding crayfish, has successfully leveraged this advantage to boost an ecological planting and breeding mode of ‘shrimp and rice farming’ in recent years, thus promoting the local agricultural economy.
Professor He Ke answers questions. ( Hu Yue/photo)
At the end of the event, Prof. He Ke encouraged all HZAUers to learn, love and support agriculture, pondering on how to develop new models for rural development, so as to contribute to China’s agricultural industry.
Source: http://news.hzau.edu.cn/2023/0506/66356.shtml
Translated by: Huang Qian
Supervised by: Jin Bei
