Today, October 16th, marks World Food Day, and this week coincides with our country’s Food Security Awareness Week. In recent years, China has experienced consistent grain production surpluses, leading to ample grain reserves and a robust market supply.
China’s grain security situation continues to improve, with total grain production remaining stable at over 1.3 trillion Jin for nine consecutive years. Our grain reserves are significantly above the international safety threshold of 17% to 18%. The inventories of wheat and rice are sufficient to meet the consumption needs of our population for more than a year, ensuring a steady and well-functioning domestic grain market.
Currently, the country’s standard grain storage capacity exceeds 700 million tons, a 36% increase since 2014. Low-temperature and precision storage capacities account for 200 million tons and 5.5 million tons, respectively, while state-owned grain depots maintain a comprehensive loss rate of less than 1% during the storage cycle. Over 5,500 grain post-harvest service centers across the nation provide farmers with timely assistance in cleaning, drying, and storage.
Local governments are advancing high-quality grain projects, leveraging over 34 billion yuan in fiscal funding, which has spurred more than 43 billion yuan in social investments. These efforts have yielded significant results in enhancing the resilience of the grain supply chain and building a modern grain industry system.
There are 13 provinces where the annual output value of the grain industry exceeds 100 billion yuan, with Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, Guangdong, and Sichuan surpassing 200 billion yuan.
Let’s take a closer look at the “technology-driven” approach in the fields.
To strengthen the foundation of our national grain supply, technological advancements play a crucial role. Currently, the contribution rate of agricultural technology progress in China stands at 63.2%, placing us among the world’s leaders in agricultural innovation. During this year’s autumn harvest and sowing season, technology is making a significant impact in the fields.
As of now, over 60% of the autumn harvest has been completed, with winter wheat sowing commencing in several regions. In Qihe County, Dezhou City, Shandong Province, new agricultural machines are showcasing their capabilities in the fields.
Li Chao, Vice Chairman of the Bohao Agricultural Machinery Service Cooperative in Dezhou, explained, “Seeding parameters of the sowing machines can be precisely adjusted according to different wheat varieties, soil conditions, and agronomic requirements. Coupled with a driverless system, the operational precision can achieve centimeter-level accuracy, significantly enhancing the accuracy compared to manual driving.”
Furthermore, data from these “driverless” agricultural machines is quickly uploaded to the cloud, creating a database for agricultural production that provides data-driven insights for farmers.
Corn is the most widely planted grain crop in China, and Inner Mongolia serves as a vital production area. At a smart demonstration farm in Tongliao, agricultural robots and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are becoming new options for pest and disease management.
Agricultural drones are not only traversing the cornfields of Tongliao but are also serving more grain fields, orchards, and cash crop areas nationwide. The current inventory of UAVs used for plant protection has reached 200,000 units. In Chongqing, the widespread use of drones has generated new job opportunities.
Wu Jing, Head of the Chongqing Supply and Marketing Cooperative Intelligent Agricultural Services Group, stated, “In all four stages of agricultural production—tillage, sowing, management, and harvesting—we have integrated intelligent machinery with new agricultural technologies and practices. Through extensive promotion of socialized agricultural services, this has visibly improved both grain yield and quality.”
The support of technology and the promotion of digital agriculture are steadily enhancing China’s comprehensive grain production capacity.
Cheng Guoqiang, Professor and Director of the National Grain Security Strategy Research Institute at Renmin University of China, emphasized, “This year marks the first year of implementing the ‘New Round of 100 Billion Jin Grain Production Capacity Improvement Action Plan.’ The goal of this plan is to add over 100 billion Jin in grain production capacity by 2030, further enhancing the nation’s comprehensive grain production capabilities. We are solidifying the foundation of food security at a higher level to ensure that we can produce and supply when needed.”
(Reported by Liang Lijuan, Jiang Shulun, and Hu Ren from CCTV)
