In the past, the processing of agricultural products, bamboo and wood, tea, and fruit in mountainous areas mainly relied on manual labor, which was labor-intensive and inefficient. The use of machinery has greatly changed the previous situation. For example, a 10-meter-long moso bamboo culm can be processed by machine into 8 uniform bamboo strips in just 30 seconds; when further processed into bamboo products and bamboo toothpicks, efficiency increases several times over. Ningguo Zhanshi Walnut Co., Ltd. invested 4 million yuan to introduce various walnut processing equipment, greatly increasing output; its output value reached 320 million yuan in 2012, and online sales exceeded 3 million yuan during the 2013 Double "Eleven" shopping festival. Its products not only sell well domestically but are also exported abroad in large quantities.

　　More in-depth investigation has found that although agricultural machinery in mountainous areas is currently developing rapidly, the market potential remains great. First, the variety of machinery is still insufficient; some machinery products needed in mountainous areas, such as equipment for processing Chinese chestnuts and medicinal herbs and for interforest weeding, are still lacking, and the degree of mechanization is not high enough. Second, the coverage is not broad enough. Those using machinery for processing are basically agricultural machinery cooperatives and specialized households, while individual farmer households rarely use machinery. Third, the level of mechanical processing still needs to be improved. Farmers prefer machinery products that are economical, suitable, highly efficient, and of good processing quality.

　　Professionals believe that at present there are good opportunities and many favorable conditions for accelerating the development of agricultural machinery in mountainous areas. On the one hand, with the advancement of agricultural modernization, especially as some rural laborers go out to work, farmers in mountainous areas urgently need to raise the level of mechanization to improve production efficiency and economic returns. On the other hand, governments at all levels and competent departments strongly support agricultural machinery development; in recent years, subsidies for purchasing agricultural machinery have increased year by year, and farmers' enthusiasm for buying agricultural machinery has grown. Therefore, agricultural machinery manufacturers should carry out in-depth market research and focus on developing various types of agricultural machinery needed in mountainous areas. They should take the mechanization of production and primary processing of specialty agricultural products in mountainous areas as a breakthrough, promote structural optimization and product upgrading of agricultural equipment in mountainous areas, and raise the level of agricultural mechanization there; they should pursue comprehensive development and actively promote mechanization in the processing of tea, hickory nuts, Chinese chestnuts, sericulture, moso bamboo, highland vegetables, medicinal herbs, and other products.

　　It is reported that the agricultural machinery department of Anhui Province has formulated a plan to further accelerate the process of agricultural mechanization in mountainous areas. By the end of 2015, the province will build 10 experimental and demonstration zones for mechanization of specialty agriculture; mechanization for products such as fruit and mulberry in mountainous areas will reach 35%; registered specialized agricultural machinery cooperatives will reach 500; and agricultural mechanization in mountainous areas will reach the advanced national level.