Hainan's first research institute-level science body established in Sanya

The first research institute-level science and technology association in China's southernmost Hainan province — the Science and Technology Association of Sanya Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences — was recently inaugurated.

The initiative creates a new platform for attracting talent and the application of scientific achievements — advancing grassroots science and technology efforts in Hainan province.

The new body is operating under the aegis of the Sanya Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, founded in 2012 by the Sanya municipal bureau of agriculture and rural affairs.

The academy features over 2,000 acres of research fields, equipped with standard laboratories, seedling production facilities, smart greenhouses and a 33-acre tropical fruit germplasm resource garden with 260 tropical plant species.

It is also the first in Hainan that has been licensed for producing passion fruit seedlings, with an annual output now exceeding 10 million high-quality seedlings.

Moreover, the academy has made significant strides in specialized Nanfan crop breeding and tropical agriculture, particularly in grain production.

Rice yields in demonstration plots have topped 2,000 kilograms per mu (0.067 hectares), whose breeding methods have been promoted to more than 100,000 mu of rice fields.

In collaboration with academician Qian Qian's team, the academy has successfully trialed a dwarf rice variety called Xiaowei — achieving yields of 410 kg per mu, opening up new avenues for innovative cultivation methods.

By 2025, the academy had cumulatively produced over three million grafted vegetable seedlings, with hundreds of thousands of high-quality seedlings being shipped to inland regions like Central China's Hunan province to support early spring vegetable production.

The launch of the association is seen as an innovative step in extending science and technology outreach to grassroots research institutes.

Through the platform, the Sanya Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences will continue to integrate agricultural innovation resources, supporting the development of the Nanfan Silicon Valley and the Hainan Free Trade Port — while contributing to food security and rural vitalization efforts in southern Hainan.