Chongming will build its own eco-service brands to promote the development of ecological industries as well as producing eco-goods and creating an eco-friendly environment.

District Party chief Tang Hailong said Chongming’s plan to turn itself into an ecological island also requires “industrialized thinking” to plan for modern agriculture.

Talking on the sidelines of the 13th National People’s Congress, Tang said Chongming was bringing in world-class agricultural firms dealing with livestock and plants and would benchmark itself against international eco-islands.

“For example, Jeju Island’s available land size is smaller than Chongming. However, it built itself as a ‘shopping paradise’ and is popular among tourists from all over the world,” Tang said. “And I believe Chongming can also make it.”

He wants Chongming to produce agricultural goods without using chemical fertilizers or pesticides.

“The grand fields are our ‘shopping malls.’ The agricultural products are the visible resources while the air, sunshine and the environment are the invisible resources,” he said.

He said Chongming is also considering creating its own eco-brands, saying that can be a key selling factor.

“A Chongming youth opened a ‘Happy Farm’ program and I once visited there,” he said.

“The staffers teach children to plant peanuts in spring and send videos of the peanuts’ growth to them every week, showing them how the peanuts are growing.

“After the peanuts ripen, the children will go there for the harvest. The kids’ knowledge and experience of agriculture then can move from online to offline.

“The farm also shows the children how a mother pig gives birth and shows the pigs at different stages in their growth. And that’s very attractive to the kids.”