Digital Economy–Agriculture Integration Empowers Low-Carbon Transformation of Agriculture: Theory and Empirical Evidence

Abstract

The integration of the digital economy into agriculture development has transformed the challenges of traditional agriculture’s low productivity and inefficiency, expedited the holistic low-carbon transition of agriculture, and fostered the ecological rejuvenation of rural regions. This research employs provincial panel data from 29 Chinese provinces spanning the period from 2013 to 2022 to construct an index system for the integration of the digital economy and agriculture. Furthermore, it quantifies the carbon emission intensity in the crop farming sector to empirically assess the impact and underlying mechanisms of this integration. The results highlight three key points. (1) The level of development of the digital economy–agricultural integration (DIGC) in China is showing a growing trend, and the carbon emission intensity of agriculture exhibits a “U”-shaped pattern, initially rising and subsequently declining. (2) The digital economy–agriculture integration can reduce the carbon emission intensity of agriculture and achieve it by promoting the progress of agricultural technology. (3) The influence of the digital economy–agriculture integration on agricultural carbon emission intensity is more pronounced in major grain-producing and consuming regions; additionally, this effect is more significant in areas with advanced digital economic development. Consequently, it is essential to maximize the impact of digital economy–agricultural integration on carbon sequestration and emission reduction, while vigorously advancing the low-carbon green transformation of agriculture.