Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

What Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences does

The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS, 中国农业科学院) is the central-level national agricultural research institution of China, established in 1957 and designated as the country's highest-level comprehensive agricultural research organization. It operates 36 affiliated research institutes covering the full spectrum of agricultural science — including crop science, plant protection, biotechnology, animal sciences, vegetable and flower research, food science and technology, agricultural resources and regional planning, agricultural economics, and quality standards and testing — supported by 11,207 practitioners, 6,896 enrolled graduate students, 18+1 academicians, and over 500 high-level scientific personnel. CAAS maintains 550 major research platforms (including 8 national key laboratories and 5 national engineering research centers) and 119 experimental bases spanning 27 provinces, with a total experimental footprint of 8.82万亩 (approximately 58,800 acres).

The academy's core technology stack spans CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing (demonstrated at 65.9% efficiency in commercial wheat variety Lunxuan 13), thermostable enzyme engineering for aflatoxin degradation (95% removal in maize matrix), UAV-based multispectral soil salinity mapping, multi-omics analytics, biosensor arrays for food safety detection, and AI-driven greenhouse light optimization models (R² > 0.98). It also operates China's first integrated campus vertical farm and a smart breeding platform co-developed with Alibaba Cloud. CAAS holds the world's second-largest crop germplasm collection at 520,000 accessions, Asia's largest agricultural library (2.38 million volumes), and 6,580 recorded major scientific achievements. Revenue derives primarily from central government budget allocations through the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, supplemented by technology transfer and licensing to agricultural enterprises, industry expert technical consulting services, and philanthropic grants routed through the Beijing CAAS Agricultural Development Foundation.

Name

Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

Legal name

Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

Website

https://caas.cn

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CAAS is China's highest-level national agricultural research institution, operating 36 affiliated institutes and 119 experimental bases across 27 provinces, conducting fundamental and applied research in crop science, biotechnology, plant protection, and food safety to support national food security and rural development.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Research Services

NAICS

Other Crop Farming (1119), Vegetable and Melon Farming (1112)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100), Agricultural Services (700), Agricultural Prod-Livestock & Animal Specialties (200)

akta.pro primary industry

Carbon, Sustainability & Farm Certification Support (Agro-Environmental Advisory) (AFACABAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

CEA Monitoring, Sensors & Automation Software (SCADA, IoT, Climate/Recipe Control) (AFAAAHAG), Biosecurity, Pest & Disease Control for CEA (IPM, Screening, Sanitation) (AFAAAHAK), Irrigation, Fertigation & Nutrient Delivery Systems (Dosing, Injectors, Sensors) (AFAAAHAE)

Keywords

• Agricultural research
• Crop science
• Technology transfer
• Germplasm resources
• Agricultural extension

Headquarters

HQ city

Beijing

HQ country

China

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Government funding and research grants: CAAS receives centralized government funding as a national-level agricultural research institution, with funding allocated through the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and other state agencies for fundamental research, applied research, and high-tech development
2. Technology transfer and commercialization: Revenue generated through transfer of developed technologies, improved crop varieties, and scientific achievements to agricultural enterprises and farming communities
3. Industry expert services: Technical consulting and expert services provided through industry expert teams supporting agricultural production and rural development

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CAAS is China's national-level agricultural research institution conducting fundamental and applied research across crop science, plant protection, biotechnology, and agricultural engineering. It operates 36 affiliated research institutes, develops improved crop varieties and agricultural technologies, and transfers them through industry expert teams, demonstration bases, and international cooperation frameworks. The academy also publishes academic journals, maintains the world's second-largest crop germplasm collection, and provides technology transfer and consulting services to government agencies, agricultural producers, and international partners.

Product overview

The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) operates as China's premier national-level agricultural research institution with a comprehensive portfolio spanning academic publishing, digital platforms, research infrastructure, and technology transfer services. The academy publishes prominent academic journals including the Journal of Integrative Agriculture (JIA) and 中国农业科学, maintaining Asia's largest agricultural library collection of 2.38 million volumes. CAAS operates 36 research institutes with extensive digital infrastructure including the CAAS Cloud Meeting and Cloud Video platforms, National Agricultural Science Data Center, and Agricultural Science Alliance Technology Resource Sharing Platform. Research capabilities are concentrated in 8 national key laboratories, 5 national engineering research centers, and the recently upgraded National Key Laboratory for Vegetable Biological Breeding with five integrated technology platforms. The academy conducts cutting-edge research in areas including smart breeding (via the Smart Breeding Public Welfare Project with Alibaba Cloud), vertical farming technology, UAV-based precision agriculture, and multi-omics analysis. Technology transfer is facilitated through 21 industrial expert teams providing agricultural extension services, while the Beijing CAAS Agricultural Development Foundation manages funding for talent awards, international exchange, and research projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Journal of Integrative Agriculture (JIA) An international academic journal published by CAAS covering agricultural science research across multiple disciplines, for researchers and academic institutions.
• 中国农业科学 (Chinese Agricultural Science) Core Chinese-language academic journal publishing fundamental and applied agricultural research for the Chinese agricultural science community.
• National Agricultural Science Data Center (国家农业科学大数据中心) National-level data center providing agricultural science data sharing and analytics services for researchers and policy-makers.
• CAAS Cloud Meeting (CAAS云会务) Cloud-based meeting management and collaboration platform for CAAS operations, conferences, and academic events.
• CAAS Cloud Video (CAAS云视频) Video conferencing and streaming platform for CAAS internal and external communications and academic seminars.
• Agricultural Science Alliance Technology Resource Sharing Platform (农科联盟科技资源共建共享平台) Platform for sharing scientific and technological resources among agricultural research institutions nationwide.
• Smart Breeding Public Welfare Project (智慧育种公益项目) Collaboration with Alibaba establishing a smart breeding platform integrating biotechnology, information technology, and intelligent technology, with joint development of professional smart breeding talent.
• Industrial Expert Teams (产业专家团) Technology extension service teams including rapeseed, cotton, and other crop industry expert groups providing full-cycle technical guidance to agricultural production regions and farmers.
• Beijing CAAS Agricultural Development Foundation (北京中国农业科学院农业发展基金会) Non-public fundraising foundation managing social donations to CAAS and subsidiaries, funding talent awards, achievement awards, facility improvement, discipline construction, international exchange, and other agricultural science projects.
• National Key Laboratory for Vegetable Biological Breeding (蔬菜生物育种全国重点实验室) National key laboratory with five integrated technology platforms covering germplasm resource mining, functional gene analysis, metabolomics, precise phenotypic identification, and molecular breeding for vegetable crop improvement.

Quantifiable outcome

• World-record 85% protein yield in bioethanol biosynthesis
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature6 records

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• INRAE (France): France's national research institute for agriculture, food and environment. Comparable in being a publicly funded, multi-site research organization covering crop science, animal science, food safety and sustainability.
• International Rice Research Institute (IRRI): Global CGIAR center focused on rice research with germplasm collections and Africa/Asia breeding programs. Direct peer through joint work with AfricaRice and overlapping mandate on staple-crop improvement.
• USDA Agricultural Research Service: The U.S. national agricultural research agency, operating a comparable multi-institute structure with crop, animal and food safety research. Most direct functional peer to CAAS globally in mandate, scale and government affiliation.
• Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR): India's apex agricultural research body with 100+ institutes covering crops, horticulture, animal sciences and fisheries. Closest regional peer to CAAS in scale, structure and developing-economy food-security focus.
• Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa): Brazil's national agricultural research corporation with a similar tropical-crop focus, germplasm banking and technology-transfer mandate. Operates as a state-owned enterprise with both research and development roles, closely analogous to CAAS.

Broad incumbents

• Syngenta Group: Global agrochemical and seed company (now Chinese-owned). Operates upstream breeding and digital agriculture capabilities that overlap with CAAS's crop-improvement mandate, but as a commercial counterpart rather than a public institute.
• CSIRO (Australia): Australia's national science agency with a significant agriculture and food research portfolio. Comparable in being a government-funded multi-disciplinary research organization, though agriculture is one of several major domains.
• Wageningen University & Research: Leading European agricultural and food research university with broad crop, animal and sustainability mandate. Comparable research depth but operates under a university-affiliated model rather than a national academy.

Emerging players

• Origin Agritech: Chinese ag-tech company developing genetically modified corn and crop hybrids with CAAS technological support. Represents the private-sector commercialization pathway for CAAS-originated research, making it a natural emerging peer.

Regional players

• AfricaRice Center: Africa-wide rice research CGIAR center based in Côte d'Ivoire. Direct collaborative peer through CAAS joint research platforms in Ethiopia and CAASTIA membership, focused on climate-resilient rice for African production systems.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chinese-academy-of-agricultural-sciences

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries23 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences