Hong Kong plans 80 hectare agriculture park to boost agro-business and local production
Park could cost government HK$7 billion as it bids to boost agribusiness and local production
Plans by the city to set up its first agricultural park by acquiring about 80 hectares of private farmland at an estimated cost of HK$7 billion were revealed yesterday.
The park will be designed to transfer knowledge of agricultural science and agribusiness management, increase local production, rehabilitate fallow farmland and accommodate farmers who have been displaced by developments, the government announced.
While the proposal is expected to increase the annual local produce by 25 per cent to about 20,400 tonnes - equivalent to a value of about HK$200 million yearly - the cost of purchasing the land was not disclosed.
Secretary for Food and Health Dr Ko Wing-man said property would be acquired according to the Land Resumption Ordinance, which has a current compensation rate for farmland of HK$808 per square foot. This would bring the land cost to about HK$7 billion.
The proposal, which will now go to a three-month public consultation, does not give a timetable or specify possible locations for the park.
"This is probably the first time for the Hong Kong government to buy land for developing the agricultural industry," Ko said. "We hope [the proposal] will remove constraints like uncertain land tenure that has stopped farmers from investing in their production."
