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Although the virus outbreak has confined Wang Baiqing from going to the market, he has ordered 10 tonnes of fertilizer online, which can be delivered directly to his fields.
"I don't think the epidemic will affect my farming business a lot," he said.
Wang is a farmer in the city of Wuchang, famous for its fragrant rice, in China's major grain producer Heilongjiang Province where there are 15.93 million hectares of arable land.
More vigorous development of the already thriving e-commerce is changing the production mode of Chinese farmers, and this has become more evident during the epidemic outbreak when preparing spring plowing in the cloud is buzzing among farmers who believe farming season waits for no one.
"I thought this year's plowing would delay as we couldn't buy agricultural materials in the market like we used to," said Wu Jintang, a 53-year-old grain grower in Heilongjiang, who aims to plant 400 hectares of corn and more than 266 hectares of soybean this year.
"Online shopping, however, has made everything easier. Through a few clicks, I've prepared enough chemical fertilizers and seeds," Wu added.
Beifeng Agricultural Production Means Group, which accounts for more than half of Heilongjiang's overall chemical fertilizer sales volume, has a total of about 2 million tonnes of chemical fertilizers ready for the upcoming spring farming, said Qi Xieli, general manager's assistant of the company. "We also provide online service for agricultural materials."
Launched on Jan. 20, the company's online mall has registered more than 1,000 orders, with its online business volume totaling over 100 million yuan (around 14.3 million U.S. dollars).
Local authorities in China are urged to guide farmers and all types of business entities to work in an orderly manner, said a circular issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs on Feb. 10.
The circular stressed support for manufacturers of agricultural materials to resume production capacity as soon as possible, increase market supply and ensure the needs of spring plowing.
So far, 4,969 manufacturers and stores of agricultural materials and stores in Heilongjiang have launched online sales, through which farmers have ordered more than 50,000 tonnes of seeds, over 3,500 tonnes of pesticides and 269,000 tonnes of fertilizers online.
To avoid crowds, local authorities in the city of Heihe have organized experts to conduct training for farmers through the Internet, to explain related knowledge and solve their problems in agricultural production.
"We've promoted 16 industrial innovation systems in the province, with 497 experts, to carry out remote agricultural training and provide guidance to farmers online," said Li Shirun, an official with the provincial department of agriculture and rural affairs.
