Toward the mechanization of onion cultivation: Innovation and challenges in domestic onion plug seedling technology in Taiwan

China is facing challenges in its onion industry due to natural disasters, labor shortages, and the need to automate transplantation to improve efficiency and reduce costs. The country relies on seedling cultivation before transplanting, which is vulnerable to typhoons and requires a lot of labor, especially with the aging population. Traditional methods also result in lower quality seedlings and higher costs from re-seeding. Automated transplantation, while requiring high-quality plug seedlings, could solve these issues. However, the high threshold for plug seedling cultivation and the resistance from professional vegetable nurseries to produce onion seedlings due to their long cultivation time and space requirements are hindering progress. Additionally, the high cost of plug seedlings and the need for specialized equipment and materials for automated transplanting are concerns for farmers. Overall, solving the labor shortage through mechanization and improving onion industry competitiveness involves overcoming these challenges in plug seedling technology and automation.