One of the world’s oldest industries is undergoing a high-tech makeover. So-called smart farming technology is streamlining the delivery of food from fields to dinner tables. Drones are planting seeds. Robots are harvesting crops. Influencers are promoting fresh produce by livestream on Chinese ecommerce platforms. The shift is proving lucrative for Asian retailers.
Smart farming exploits three trends. First, many better-off Chinese consumers now prefer grocery deliveries to the infection risks of “wet markets”, where fresh food is traditionally sold. Many of the initial Covid-19 cases in Wuhan were linked to a market of this kind.
Second, Japan has long suffered from a shortage of farmers because of its ageing population.
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