Nantong in East China's Jiangsu province has made strides in poverty alleviation and rural revitalization over the past decade.

In 2016, Nantong unveiled the first municipal-level standards for high-standard farmland in China. During the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) period, Nantong developed 2.34 million mu (156,000 hectares) of high-standard farmland, accounting for 80 percent of the city's total farmland.  

The demonstration area of the city's 3,100-mu Yangman River high-standard farmland has achieved complete mechanization.

With an annual output of 3.4 billion kilograms of grains, Nantong has seen the annual output of one-mu farmland exceed 1,000 kilograms for 12 consecutive years.

The city has also established 156 new cooperative farms in the past decade, covering more than 80,000 mu.

A sample survey of 4,292 family farms in Nantong shows that the average annual income of farms involved in farming and animal husbandry can reach 3.22 million yuan ($451,968). And 50 percent of farms can earn income from leisure and sightseeing agriculture, with an average income of 386,000 yuan.

In addition, Nantong has also developed 14 regional agricultural brands and established five vegetable production bases and nine vegetable supply bases for Shanghai.

In 2020, Shizong village in Tongzhou district established the first demonstration base for unmanned agricultural machinery. The base helped reduce annual labor costs by 80,000 yuan, increase the average annual yield per mu by 82 kilograms, and save 210,000 yuan annually through increased efficiency.

In addition, 83 provincial-level demonstration villages in Nantong have seen improvements in their environments over the past decade.

High-standard farmland in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

A family farm in Nantong combines breeding and cultivation. [Photo/Nantong Daily]