The foreign expert affairs bureau of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region recently sent out a follow-up questionnaire on a plastic sheeting program introduced from Ireland, to check on users’ responses.

The plastic sheeting, sometimes referred to as ‘mulch’, is used to prevent the growth of weeds and to conserve water in crop production and landscaping, especially in dry areas. And it could play an important role in Xinjiang agriculture, in an area where they lack water and have low temperatures in spring.

The equipment, technology, biodegradable plastic sheeting, and management for the program all come from the Samco Agricultural Manufacturing Co, in Ireland, for a 1.6-hectare experimental farm plot in the city of Changji.

Samuel Shine, SAMCO’s GM and the inventor of the plastic sheeting technology, visited Xinjiang recently to explain how the program works and, after visiting the experimental farm site to check on some corn planted there and on how the sheeting was working, said he had a positive attitude about the application in Xinjiang.

This biodegradable plastic sheeting has certain ecological advantages in ease of use and increased production, which is around 10 - 20 percent better than with traditional technology.