An aerial view of a greenhouse vegetable standardized production demonstration park in Shouguang, east China's Shandong Province.

Every minute in Shouguang, east China's Shandong Province, over 17,000 kilograms of vegetables are sold and shipped across the country on average. Here, more than 150,000 batches of vegetable samples are tested annually, boasting a consistent pass rate of over 99%. The application rate of Internet of Things in the seventh-generation greenhouse in this county-level city has surpassed 80%, with an increasing number of vegetable growers adopting "smart" farming methods. Shouguang has independently developed 205 vegetable varieties and has expanded its share of the domestic seed market from 54% in 2010 to over 70%. As China's largest vegetable production base, Shouguang maintains a planting area of 40,000 hectares, with an annual output value of 11 billion yuan and an annual turnover of 20 billion yuan, making it the largest vegetable distribution and price-setting center in China and Asia.

Behind the data lies the efforts of 1.1 million hardworking Shouguang people, committed to the rural revitalization across the 2,072 square kilometers of land. Our reporters recently visited Shouguang, China's "vegetables capital," to hear inspiring stories from Shouguang locals.

Seed independence

Seeds are the first link in the agricultural industrial chain and are considered as the chips of agriculture. Cultivating innovation in the seed industry has been an unremitting pursuit of Shouguang for years.