To tackle the major challenges of market liberalization and the aging of the agricultural population, Taiwan's agricultural sector must carve out a niche in the domestic market and enhance its competitiveness in order to advance into international markets, Premier Mao Chi-kuo stated today.
In addition, more young people should be encouraged to engage in agriculture, and the agricultural portion of the Productivity 4.0 project must be employed by setting up a systemic production, marketing and consumer market in order to achieve the goal of intelligent productivity.
Market liberalization is exerting major pressure on the nation's agricultural sector, the premier pointed out. The administration must turn this crisis into opportunity by raising the sector's competitiveness. Quality should be improved in order to establish differentiation of quality and pricing in the domestic market. Moreover, competitiveness should be developed for entry into the global market.
To respond to the aging of the agricultural population, the government will adopt various measures and encourage more young people to engage in agriculture so that the sector is sustained.
The most important measure in resolving the various issues of agriculture is to employ Productivity 4.0, the premier pointed out. This would call for linking the whole chain from production to marketing and then to the consumer end market by establishing a system so as to achieve intelligent productivity. This task is undertaken by the Council of Agriculture's Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute (TARI), and rightly so given the central role the TARI plays in the agricultural system, the premier noted.
Finally, the premier pointed out that the government's recent program to boost consumption is also related to agricultural Productivity 4.0, as one important aspect of the stimulus program is replacing outdated agricultural machinery by subsidizing purchases of modern equipment. Agricultural Productivity 4.0 is the transition from automation to smart automation, and farmers who are still in the "2.0" or "3.0" stages are to first advance to the "3.5" stage by replacing their outdated machinery. Mao expressed his gratitude to agricultural workers for their enthusiastic support of the government's program and pledged the administration will map out all the details and add subsidies to the program if necessary.
The premier made these remarks while attending the scientific research and development (R&D) results exhibits and promotional activities commemorating the TARI's 120th anniversary.
Mao was briefed on the TARI's geographic information system and put on anaglyph spectacles to view the cultivation and location of crops via remote navigation as well as physiographic soil maps.
The TARI has expanded its exhibits of field crops to demonstrate its R&D results. Aside from visiting the exhibition of significant paddy strains developed after Taiwan's retrocession, the premier took up the scythe to harvest the crops to stand witness to the TARI's 120 years of contributions.