China food security: focus on increased domestic soybean production amid self-sufficiency drive
- China will aim to increase its national soybean yield by the equivalent of around 75kg (165lbs) per hectare this year as part of a food self-sufficiency drive
- A heavy reliance on imported commodities has raised significant concerns about food security as China imports more than 80 per cent of the soybeans it uses
China is aiming to increase soybean production this year as part of efforts to achieve greater food self-sufficiency amid escalating geopolitical tensions.
Beijing has doubled down on efforts to improve agricultural production and planting, elevating its significance to a political task and making soybean production a criteria to be used to judge the performance of officials, according to the State Council on Thursday.
China will aim to increase its national soybean yield by 5kg (11lbs) per mu – a Chinese unit of land measurement equivalent to around 0.0667 hectares or 0.165 acres – according to Pan Wenbo, director of the crop farming management department within the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.
A heavy reliance on imported commodities has raised significant concerns about food security as China imports more than 80 per cent of the soybeans it uses to feed its people and livestock, with shipments coming mainly from Brazil and the United States.
To be frank, farmers are less motivated to grow beans than last year due to the previous low market price of soybeans and their low benefits
Farmers will be offered subsidies to encourage increased soybean planting to bolster production, Pan said.
