Farmers in Qingdao WCNA, Shandong province adopt a three-dimensional eco-planting and breeding system. [Photo/Dazhong News]

Farmers in Qingdao West Coast Area (Qingdao WCNA), Shandong province have adopted a three-dimensional eco-planting and breeding system in which they raise fish and plant blueberries in a single agricultural greenhouse, which has boosted efficiency and local rural vitalization.

Jiang Chunlei, chairman of a local farming company in Qingdao WCNA, said that the three-dimensional eco-planting and breeding system makes more efficient use of land, consumes less energy, requires less labor, and produces more revenue than traditional greenhouse cultivation.

Jiang stated that the greenhouse combines the local blueberry industry with intelligent aquaculture. In the intelligent greenhouse, there are about 900 blueberry plants, with temperature, humidity, and nutrient solution all being monitored in real time.

"In this greenhouse, we have built a blueberry greenhouse, a bean sprout factory, and a fish farming facility all in one, perfectly integrating the three to achieve year-round operation and maximized profits", Jiang added.

"The ecological greenhouse yields approximately 600,000 yuan ($82,891.2) in annual profits from fish farming, and the anticipated profits from blueberries and bean sprouts are nearly 400,000 yuan. The annual net profit of each ecological greenhouse is close to 1 million yuan, which is eight to 10 times that of a typical blueberry greenhouse", according to Jiang.

The ecological greenhouse not only increases output but also greatly reduces energy consumption. Jiang explained with the combined fish and blueberry farming approach, the average monthly electricity bill has dropped to around 7,000 yuan, resulting in an approximate savings of 65,000 yuan in electricity costs for a single greenhouse during the winter last year.