The “2019 Future Tech Exposition”, organized by the Ministry of Science and Technology, took place at the Taipei World Trade Center from December 5th to 12th, with 500 works of innovative science and technology on display. Looking for research that is “applicable to industry” or “breakthrough” in nature, experts judged the entries and selected 88 results which were most aligned with real-world industry demand.
A team led by NPUST Assistant Professor Chen Wei-Cheng was selected for their “breakthrough” research on “production management, disease prevention and pest control for beefsteak tomatoes cultivated in high-temperature environments”. Prof. Chen’s team included NPUST graduate student, Tsai Pei-Jie, together with researchers from Chung Hsing University and the Taichung District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, and personnel from the Golden Triangle Fruit & Vegetable Co-op.
The NPUST professor explained that they achieved their results by integrating different professional areas of study. The beefsteak tomato is usually produced in the winter season in Taiwan, however, in years where winter temperatures are warmer, the quality of the tomatoes suffers. To overcome this problem, a more heat tolerant variety of tomato, bred by Chung Hsing University, was selected. Then, low energy root cooling cultivation methods were applied. To deal with pests in warmer temperatures, biological agents are sprayed on the flowers. To handle this more efficiently, Prof. Chen’s research team developed smart technology equipment to administer the agents, thereby saving time and manpower.
By coordinating with the Taichung District Agricultural Research and Extension Station “Pest and Disease Prevention and Control System”, the team developed an approach to implement preventative measures to reduce potential loss of crops even before pests or diseases begin to spread. The researchers also cooperated with the Golden Triangle Fruit & Vegetable Co-op Farm, which was tasked with carrying out the cultivation work. Thanks to their coordinated efforts, the team was able to come up with results that should help producers meet the demand for beefsteak tomatoes in the fast-food industry, and drastically reduce dependency on imports.
During the awards presentations and closing ceremony, the Minster of Science and Technology, Chen Liang-gee, expressed that “Taiwan is very well suited to realize scientific dreams, with real strengths in innovation and technology for the whole world to see. However, we should not be satisfied with this. We hope that in the future, the results of scientific development will allow the people of Taiwan to make even more outstanding contributions, not only in the laboratories, but in ways that help industry to move forward.” NPUST is heavily involved in the development of intelligent technology for application in agriculture and has set up a smart-tech farm, smart agriculture equipment center, and a big data center to facilitate the efforts. In the future, the university will also be setting up a driverless vehicle center. NPUST President Chang-Hsien Tai expressed that these centers will help to integrate research results and expedite the process of getting new technologies to industrial sectors.
