From "Little Potato" to "Golden Egg" – Ulanqab in Inner Mongolia is comprehensively upgrading its entire chain to build a new development model for the potato industry.
Located in the 41° north latitude golden planting belt, Ulanqab City in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region leverages its natural advantages of a cool climate, significant diurnal temperature variation, and loose, fertile soil to stand as one of China's core potato production areas. In recent years, Ulanqab has centered its strategy on quality to deeply empower the upgrade of the entire industrial chain, propelling the potato sector from traditional large-scale cultivation towards a new phase characterized by high quality, high added value, and strong branding.
With strong support from the Ulanqab Municipal Party Committee and Government, the Ulanqab Market Supervision Bureau took the lead in initiating a pilot program for the coordinated quality improvement of the potato industry and supply chains. It pioneered the deep integration of a quality-strengthening-the-chain strategy with this locally advantageous and distinctive industry. As the lead unit for the chain, the Ulanqab Market Supervision Bureau innovatively mapped a potato quality atlas, systematically outlining the quality characteristics and interconnections at each stage of the industrial chain. Concurrently, it precisely formulated a list of quality issues, a list of key research projects, and a list of quality policy tools, effectively creating a clear "navigation map" and "construction blueprint" for industrial upgrading.
The bureau actively advanced the establishment of a national-level potato industry metrology center, positioning it as the core engine for technological advancement in the sector. It invited experts from top domestic technical institutions and universities, such as the China Aviation 304 Research Institute and China Agricultural University, to conduct in-depth technical seminars on measurement and testing technologies at leading local enterprises, fostering close integration of industry, academia, research, and application. It also efficiently utilized Ulanqab's "one-stop" service platform for quality infrastructure, providing enterprises with a comprehensive suite of technical services ranging from instrument calibration and product quality inspection to standard development and revision, effectively overcoming technical bottlenecks in enterprise development.
Ulanqab City has comprehensively strengthened its quality infrastructure—encompassing metrology, standards, certification, accreditation, inspection, and testing—to provide solid technical support for the potato industry's growth. In the field of metrology, it tackled critical "bottleneck" challenges. Addressing measurement traceability difficulties in key processing stages, such as viscosity determination, the Ulanqab Market Supervision Bureau spearheaded core technological research. It successfully developed a "Brabender Viscometer Calibration Method" with supporting calibration specifications and created a potato viscosity reference material, filling a gap in domestic metrological verification technology. Relying on the under-construction Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Potato Industry Metrology Center, it established the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Potato Industry Metrology Testing Alliance, dedicated to research on measurement and testing technologies covering the "entire industrial chain, entire traceability chain, and full life cycle." To date, 25 related patents have been applied for, significantly enhancing the industry's metrological support capabilities.
In the standards domain, Ulanqab is leading industrial development. The Ulanqab Market Supervision Bureau actively participates in the work of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Potato Standardization Technical Committee, building and continuously improving a potato standard system that covers the entire process from seed potatoes and cultivation to processing and distribution. It focused on drafting key standards like the "Technical Code for Virus-Free Potato Seedling Propagation" and "PCR Detection Method for Potato Pathogens," assisting enterprises in taking the lead or playing a dominant role in formulating and revising association standards. Notably, in smart agriculture, a standard led by the bureau, the "Operation Specification for Potato Pest and Disease Chemical Control Based on Plant Protection Unmanned Vehicles," received standardization funding support from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, reflecting the forward-looking integration of industry and technology. So far, Ulanqab has led the development of 19 regional-level local standards, with 6 recently approved, using high standards to guide the industry towards standardized and refined development.
In certification and testing, Ulanqab is building an authoritative service platform. The Ulanqab Market Supervision Bureau actively introduced advanced certification systems from abroad for seed potato production, promoting effective monitoring of the entire seed potato production process. Metrological calibration and inspection capabilities for potatoes were further enhanced, with a local institution successfully obtaining approval as one of the first national certification bodies for crop seeds, signifying that Ulanqab is at the forefront nationally in seed potato quality certification. Simultaneously, efforts to upgrade inspection and testing capabilities were intensified. One key laboratory has obtained China Metrology Accreditation (CMA) and National Crop Seed Quality Inspection Agency (CASL) qualifications, possessing the capability to perform over 90% of all test items for corresponding products, covering 1,872 parameters. It has become the most comprehensive, widely-covered, and technically robust integrated platform for potato and related food testing within the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, providing strong support for product quality and safety.
Good quality needs market recognition and, even more, brand enhancement. Using the "Ulanqab Potato" geographical indication certification mark as a link, Ulanqab City intensified brand cultivation and promotion. It successfully facilitated the recognition of the Ulanqab Potato Chinese Characteristic Agricultural Product Advantageous Zone by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and eight other departments as part of the "Second Batch of Chinese Characteristic Agricultural Product Advantageous Zones." Furthermore, "Ulanqab Potato" was included in the "Agricultural Brand Cultivation Program," significantly boosting its brand awareness and reputation. Ulanqab vigorously implemented an intellectual property strategy, issuing the "Ulanqab City Intellectual Property Reward and Subsidy Measures," cultivating regionally advantaged intellectual property enterprises, and including breeding companies in a key directory for IP protection. It actively promoted intellectual property pledge financing, helping enterprises transform "intellectual property" into "tangible assets." Currently, leading enterprises in Ulanqab hold 54 valid patents, demonstrating continuously burgeoning innovation vitality.
Promoting quality transformation ultimately depends on enterprises. The Ulanqab Market Supervision Bureau actively guided enterprises to adopt advanced management models like performance excellence. Over 50 potato enterprises have implemented performance excellence management systems, and 24 enterprises have established a chief quality officer system. Presently, the city has seen the emergence of several quality benchmarks: one enterprise won the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Chairman's Quality Award, one enterprise won the Ulanqab Mayor's Quality Award, and four enterprises have been ranked as national high-tech enterprises. These benchmark enterprises are driving the entire industrial chain to seek efficiency through management and development through quality.
A series of solid and effective innovative measures have converged into powerful momentum for industrial development. To date, Ulanqab's potato planting area has stabilized at 200,000 hectares, with an annual output reaching 4 million tons, ranking first among prefecture-level cities nationwide. The industrial chain is increasingly robust, with 53 potato-related enterprises, a stable seed breeding base of 27,000 hectares, and the area dedicated to tissue culture laboratories and aeroponics firmly holding the top position in the country. From the fields to dining tables, from primary agricultural products to deep-processed goods, and from relying on natural endowments to being driven by technology and quality, the Ulanqab potato industry is steadily advancing along a high-quality development path, moving from the fertile land beyond the Great Wall towards broader markets.
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