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The Chinese government has always attached great importance to the grain
issue. With a population of more than 1.2 billion, China is a major grain
producer as well as a major grain consumer.
What is the food situation in China? What is the country's grain production
potential? Can the Chinese people feed themselves? And how will China
improve its grain production? Through scientific analysis the Chinese
government, in the manner of seeking truth from facts, now addresses these
questions of universal concern as follows:
I. New China Has Solved the Problem of
Feeding Its People
The semi-colonial and semi-feudal old China before Liberation in 1949
was perennially haunted by the specter of starvation. For long periods
of time in the old days 80 percent of the population suffered from starvation
or semi-starvation because of the extreme backwardness of agricultural
production. Natural disasters nearly always resulted in wide"ispread deaths
from starvation. In 1949 when the People's Republic of China was founded,
the national grain yield per hectare was only 1,035 kg, and the per capita
share of grain was only 210 kg a year.
After the founding of the People's Republic, the feudal ownership of
land was abolished. Under the leadership of their government, the Chinese
people devoted themselves to developing grain production through self-reliance
and hard work. As a result, China is now able to feed 22 percent of the
world's population on about seven percent of the world's cultivated land.
Total grain output in 1995 more than quadrupled the 1949 figure, or an
average increase of 3.1 percent a year. At present, China ranks first
in total grain output in the world, with the per capita share of grain
reaching approximately 380 kg (including legume and tuber crops), which
is the global average. The per capita production of meat, aquatic products,
eggs, fruit and vegetables has reached 41 kg, 21 kg, 14 kg, 35 kg and
198 kg, respectively, which are all higher than the world's average. Statistics
from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization show that China contributed
31 percent of the world's increased grain output in the 1980s. China's
significant achievements in developing grain production have not only
basically eradicated the problem of people not having enough to eat and
wear and gradually raised the living standards of the Chinese people,
but also made great contributions to the worldwide efforts to eliminate
starvation and poverty.
The development of grain production since the founding of New China can
be divided roughly into three phases:
The first phase (1950-1978): China's total grain output increased from
113.2 million tons in 1949 to 304.8 million tons in 1978, an average annual
growth of 3.5 percent. During this 29-year period land ownership was first
reformed and the peasants were led on to the road of mutual-aid and cooperation
to liberate the productive forces, and remarkable success was achieved
in improving agricultural infrastructure and the quantity and quality
of farming equipment, and in promoting progress in agricultural science
and technology. Therefore, a solid foundation was laid for the continued
development of grain production.
The second phase (1979-1984): In 1984 China's total grain output rose
to 407.3 million tons, increasing by an average of 4.9 percent a year
during the six years from 1979 to 1984. This second phase saw the highest
increase rate in the country's grain production, which was made possible
mainly by a series of reform policies and measures initiated in the rural
areas by the Chinese government, including, among others, the household
contract responsibility system with remuneration linked to output, the
two-layer management system featuring the integration of centralization
and decentralization, and raising, by a fairly large margin, of the prices
of grain purchased by the state. These important policies and measures
greatly stimulated the enthusiasm of the farmers, brought into full play
the potential for agricultural production accumulated through years of
efforts to improve agricultural infrastructure, the level of science and
technology and the amount of investment. In this way an end was put to
the situation of China's chronic grain shortages.
The third phase (1985-present): In 1995 the country's grain output totaled
466.6 million tons, increasing by an average of 1.2 percent a year over
the previous 11 years. While continuing to develop grain production in
this period, the Chinese government has initiated measures to readjust
the structure of agricultural production and develop a diversified agricultural
economy. At the same time rapid progress was achieved in the production
of various other kinds of foodstuffs, with the output of meat (pork, beef
and mutton), aquatic products, eggs, milk and fruit reaching 42.54 million
tons, 25.17 million tons, 16.76 million tons, 5.62 million tons and 42.11
million tons respectively, or 2.8, 4.1, 3.9, 2.6 and 4.3 times the 1984
figures, respectively. Despite a lowered increase rate of grain production,
the quality of people's life was greatly improved because of increased
non-grain food supply during this period.
The successful experiences of the People's Republic of China in solving
the problem of feeding the whole population can be summarized as follows:
It has always stuck to the principle that agriculture is the basis of
the national economy, giving top priority to agriculture in national economic
development. It has made the increase of grain production the key point
in rural economic work, making all possible efforts to ensure a steady
increase in total grain output. It has carried out the reform of rural
relations of production, including implementation of the policy of the
household contract responsibility system with remuneration linked to output
and the two-layer management system featuring the integration of centralization
and decentralization. In addition, the scope of market readjustment for
grain has been expanded and the price of grain adjusted rationally so
as to mobilize the enthusiasm of the farmers for grain production. The
basic conditions for agricultural production have been continuously improved
by expediting scientific and technological advances in agriculture, improving
the quality and quantity of farming equipment, increasing agricultural
input and protecting the ecological environment. Given the precondition
that grain production is never to be compromised, land resources have
been developed and made full use of in a comprehensive way while a diversified
economy has been vigorously developed to raise farmers' income.
At present, the great majority of both urban and rural residents in China
have adequate food and clothing. The tasks ahead for the Chinese government
are, while ensuring a continued increase in grain output, to vigorously
promote diversified food production, readjust the food structure, and
continue to raise the people's quality of life from the stage of simply
having enough food and clothing to leading a relatively well-off and comfortable
life. However, the Chinese government is aware that the level of balance
between the supply of and demand for grain in the country will have to
be further enhanced, and the tense situation between supply and demand
will continue to exist for a long time to come. Meanwhile, because of
adverse natural conditions and shortage of cultivated land and water resources
in some places, there were, by the end of 1995, 65 million people (about
five percent of the whole population) who still did not have adequate
food and clothing. To tackle this problem the Chinese government has initiated
the ``poverty-alleviating program'' to lift those people above the poverty
level by the end of this century.
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