On October 25, the State Council Information Office held a press conference to discuss the operational status of the agricultural and rural economy for the first three quarters of 2024. Pan Wenbo, Chief Agronomist and Director of the Crop Management Division (Pesticide Management Division) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, shared insights about the ministry’s initiatives aimed at boosting per-acre yields of major crops like grains and oils.
According to Pan, the Ministry has launched a broad initiative to enhance yield per unit area for staple crops in collaboration with the National Development and Reform Commission. This includes accelerating the integration of five key aspects: high-quality farmland, superior seeds, advanced machinery, effective practices, and sound systems. The strategy emphasizes continuous, season-by-season efforts to tap into production potential, ultimately driving balanced increases in yield across vast areas. This year, it’s expected that grain production will surpass 14 trillion jin, contributing significantly to overall food security.
Experts attribute this year’s bumper harvest and yield enhancements to four major factors. First, there has been a focus on increasing planting density. For example, in counties that have adopted systematic approaches for corn cultivation, the average number of plants per mu has risen, with increases of 100 to 300-400 plants being reported.
Second, there has been a strong push to promote high-yielding technologies, such as precision control for corn, intercropping for soybeans, refined land preparation for wheat, and dense sowing methods for rapeseed.
Third, upgrades in agricultural machinery have become more evident, particularly in high-performance precision sowing machines. Efforts are being made to enhance sowing quality by introducing smart technology such as BeiDou navigation and autonomous driving systems.
Lastly, the systematic promotion of coordinated farming practices has facilitated balanced yield increases. For instance, areas implementing systematic wheat cultivation have seen a roughly 5.1% rise in per mu output compared to last year, collectively increasing the average yield by around 10 kilograms.
Looking ahead, Pan emphasized that the Ministry will focus on two key objectives: stabilizing area under cultivation while increasing per-acre yield. They plan to make advancements in five areas:
1. Ongoing selection and promotion of resilient, high-yielding, and quality crop varieties.
2. Continued integration of high-yield, sustainable, and machine-friendly technological practices.
3. Further dissemination of new agricultural machinery, specifically high-performance pneumatic sowing machines and orderly transplanting machines.
4. Continuous development of farmland facilities that integrate water and fertilizer systems, centralized seedling cultivation, and coordinated drainage systems to enhance disaster prevention capabilities.
5. Encouraging innovative agricultural operators and social service organizations to implement and promote productivity-enhancing measures, ensuring effective on-the-ground results that facilitate significant gains in per-acre yield.
