【Smart Agriculture | Industrial Policy】1.2 Trillion! Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Latest Release: New Policy on "Equipment Updates in Fields Such as Smart Agriculture and Facility Agriculture"

(Source: Global Robotics News)

On March 9, the Department of Planning and Finance of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs issued a notice regarding the implementation of policies related to loans for equipment updates in the agricultural sector, as follows:

In accordance with the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, and based on the requirements of the “Notice on the Establishment of Technology Innovation and Technical Transformation Re-lending Matters” (Yinfa [2024] No. 72) issued by the People’s Bank of China, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Transport, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, as well as the “Notice on Optimizing the Implementation of Equipment Update Loan Financial Subsidy Policies” (Cai Jin [2026] No. 2) issued by the Ministry of Finance, the National Development and Reform Commission, the People’s Bank of China, and the State Administration of Financial Regulation, to further guide increased financial support for equipment updates and technological renovations in the agricultural sector and to help expand effective investments in agriculture and rural areas, the following policies are issued:

1. Proactively Implement and Ensure the Effective Execution of Equipment Update Loan Policies in Agriculture

Currently, fiscal revenue and expenditure balance pressures persist, and the scope for increased government investment in agriculture is limited. Promoting loans for equipment updates in agriculture is an effective way to strengthen financial support for rural development. Local agricultural and rural departments should base their work on actual needs, raise political awareness, and pay close attention to policy timing. They should actively coordinate with finance, the People’s Bank of China, and financial regulatory departments to ensure smooth policy implementation. Departments should leverage their functions, closely connect with the People’s Bank of China’s re-lending policies and the Ministry of Finance’s central financial support for equipment updates, and normalize the planning, reserve, and selection of key agricultural and rural financing projects, further deepening financial services for major projects and operational entities in agriculture and rural areas.

2. Clarify Directions and Guide the Expansion of Equipment Update Loan Allocations in Agriculture

Building on ongoing support for the renovation of old agricultural machinery, support should be extended to facility agriculture, fishing vessels, cold chain facilities, grain and oil processing, waste recycling, and other areas, with a focus on supporting high-end, intelligent, green, and digital equipment updates. Localities should strengthen cooperation with relevant financial institutions, continuously guide financial institutions to focus on key areas, innovate products and services, and increase support efforts.

(1) Old Agricultural Machinery

Support the elimination and renewal of outdated machinery included in subsidy programs for machinery purchase and application, as well as machinery scrapping and renewal subsidies, for technological upgrades and related facilities and equipment. For machinery not covered by subsidies, updates must meet the industry standards of “Agricultural Machinery Classification” (NY/T1640-2021). Support the elimination and recycling of old machinery by enterprises involved in dismantling and recycling. The minimum financing requirement per project will be determined by provinces based on actual needs.

(2) Facility Agriculture

a. Facility planting: Focus on supporting the construction of energy-efficient, suitable, high-yield, and efficient modern planting facilities. Promote the renovation of old, inefficient facilities in key production areas, develop centralized seedling (seedling) centers equipped with crop growth monitoring, environmental regulation, water and fertilizer automation, labor-saving operations, and intelligent management.

b. Facility animal husbandry: Support technical renovations and equipment purchases for existing facilities that cannot meet cost-saving, efficiency, quality, and green safety transformation needs. Support renovation of large-scale farms, updating structures such as pens and fences, and upgrading facilities for management, environmental control, disease prevention, disinfection, manure collection, feed processing, and storage, with automation and intelligent management systems to improve overall production capacity. Infrastructure must be planned and implemented as part of the overall project. Generally, expansion of pig farming is not supported.

c. Facility fisheries: Support the renovation of traditional aquaculture methods, including upgrading pond facilities (including saline-alkali ponds), with affordable water intake/outflow, water treatment, residual feed and manure separation, water quality monitoring, precise feeding, automatic oxygenation, and intelligent inspection equipment. Select appropriate breeding species and control stocking densities to match water circulation and stocking levels. Do not conduct photovoltaic or other activities affecting aquaculture on main water surfaces of ponds. Support the renovation of old factory aquaculture facilities, including walls, frames, and roofs, as well as updates to water treatment, environmental monitoring, automatic feeding, and intelligent control equipment. Support the updating of old wooden fish cages and net pens, replacing environmentally friendly materials and upgrading environmental monitoring, precise feeding, automatic harvesting, net cleaning, and intelligent control devices to improve productivity, ecological safety, and safety standards.

d. Smart agriculture: Support the acceleration of integrating new generation information technology with all aspects of agricultural production, management, and services, promoting real-time observation, precise operations, and intelligent management, and creating smart farms suited to local conditions. Focus on digital transformation of outdated facilities and machinery, applying environmental and physical monitoring devices, autonomous operation equipment, AI, and management systems, and building supporting local area networks.

e. Other: Support facility updates and renovations in areas such as fishing ports, grain and oil drying and storage, and agricultural product wholesale markets.

(3) Fishing Vessels

Support legally registered old ocean-going fishing vessels or newly manufactured vessels after decommissioning, including updates to onboard facilities for intelligent fishing, monitoring, safety, environmental protection, medical, and sanitation equipment, as well as improving vessel safety equipment and crew facilities.

(4) Cold Chain Facilities

Support key counties (cities) in major agricultural production areas for cold chain logistics, including cold storage and preservation facilities, cold chain logistics centers, and centralized construction of cold storage facilities. Support projects involving cold storage facilities with over 20 years of use or with low energy efficiency and safety risks, including structural and insulation upgrades, high-performance pre-cooling, freezing, cold storage, ice-making, shelving, and transportation equipment updates. Promote green development by replacing environmentally harmful refrigerants and systems, encouraging the use of natural refrigerant heat pump systems, and upgrading new energy cold transport vehicles. Support intelligent upgrades of cold chain facilities, including establishing county-level intelligent dispatch platforms, updating warehouse, order, and transportation management systems, and modernizing sorting, packaging, and monitoring equipment. Infrastructure supporting these upgrades should be planned and implemented as part of the same project.

(5) Grain and Oil Processing

a. Support major grain-producing provinces engaged in wheat, rice, and corn processing with equipment updates and technological upgrades to improve quality and efficiency in cleaning, drying, milling, pressing, refining, and packaging.

b. Support oil-producing provinces engaged in processing soybeans, peanuts, rapeseed, and other oil crops with high-quality, green, efficient processing technology and equipment, including new or upgraded facilities to replace traditional oil extraction methods, promoting green, simple, and efficient production.

(6) Waste Recycling

a. Support the update of mechanized recycling equipment for old plastic films, including granulation and chemical recycling equipment, to improve recycling levels. Support upgrades to anaerobic fermentation tanks, desulfurization and dehydration systems, biogas purification and liquefaction, CO2 liquefaction, slurry separation, IoT and big data monitoring devices, to promote high-quality biogas and renewable natural gas development. Support equipment for straw crushing, baling, chopping, pelletizing, and straw film recycling to enhance comprehensive straw utilization.

b. Support the purchase and update of facilities for manure treatment, including composting, tank composting, film composting, specialized biogas fermentation, liquid storage fermentation, gas collection, and treatment systems to improve manure handling capacity and reduce odors. Support mechanized manure application equipment, including tanks, pipelines, injection systems, and related infrastructure, to improve mechanized manure application.

c. Support the purchase and update of facilities for harmless disposal of dead livestock and poultry, including transportation vehicles, automated loading/unloading, cold storage, crushing and conveying systems, chemical or high-temperature processing, sealed incineration, exhaust treatment, wastewater treatment, and intelligent control systems, with energy-saving and efficiency-enhancing modifications. Infrastructure should be planned and implemented as part of the overall project.

(7) Others

Support the application of new technologies such as AI in agricultural production, management, and services, creating typical application scenarios.

3. Standardize Processes and Optimize Service Mechanisms for Agricultural Equipment Update Loans

(1) Precise Project Reserve. Equipment update loans in agriculture will continue to be managed via a project list system. Local agricultural and rural departments should explore projects through open calls, self-declaration, bank-enterprise matching, and field surveys, identifying projects with financing needs that meet policy requirements. Project implementers should use the Agricultural and Rural Major Projects Financing Service Platform (website: http://apfp.agri.cn) to submit project information in the “Policy Support Projects” menu under “Equipment Update Loan Application” for review and inclusion.

(2) Strict Selection and Review. Local authorities should strengthen review of projects, focusing on policy compliance, applicant qualification, and authenticity of financing needs. They should cooperate with finance departments to establish joint review mechanisms, share review results efficiently, and recommend eligible projects for inclusion in the financing project database. The Ministry will coordinate with relevant industry departments to form a list of candidate projects. Projects that do not meet policy requirements but have justified financing needs can be adjusted within the database to other categories, with appropriate support.

(3) Batch Project List Push. The candidate project list will be periodically sent to 26 banks, including the China Development Bank, Agricultural Development Bank, Agricultural Bank of China, and other major banks, as well as city commercial banks such as Bank of Beijing, Bank of Shanghai, Jiangsu Bank, Nanjing Bank, and Ningbo Bank, with copies sent to the Credit Market Department of the People’s Bank of China and the Financial Department of the Ministry of Finance. Local financial branches are encouraged to actively connect with local agricultural departments, recommend high-quality projects, and improve project quality and accuracy.

(4) Full Implementation of Support Policies. The People’s Bank of China and the Ministry of Finance will review and confirm the re-lending and subsidy quotas for loans issued to projects on the list. The People’s Bank of China can provide a total re-lending quota of 1.2 trillion yuan for eligible projects; the central government will subsidize fixed asset loans related to projects on the list at 1.5 percentage points, with a maximum term of 2 years, independent of re-lending approval. Banks will pay interest to agricultural operators and pass on the subsidy funds. Agricultural departments should assist in policy interpretation, process guidance, and implementation to ensure benefits reach farmers promptly.

4. Strengthen Management and Improve Monitoring Systems for Equipment Update Loans in Agriculture

Local authorities should play their industry management roles, closely monitor project financing, construction, and commissioning, and conduct data collection, statistics, and analysis on loan approvals, usage, and subsidies. They should establish internal coordination mechanisms, with planning and finance departments overseeing overall coordination, and relevant industry departments actively cooperating. Efforts should be made to promote policy understanding through online and offline channels, share successful experiences, and create a positive environment for implementation. Coordination with related policies, such as modern facility agriculture loan subsidies, should be maintained to avoid double subsidies.

Contacts:

Agricultural and Rural Development Engineering Construction Service Center

Jin Janchong 010-59193971

Department of Planning and Finance, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs

Zhang Pu 010-59193269

Department of Planning and Finance, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs

February 26, 2026