Beijing- China’s Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Finance issued a notice requiring local authorities to mull an “all-out effort” to guarantee the harvest of summer wheat and expand the planting of soybeans “by all means”, Global Times reported.
The notice, coming at a time when the protracted Russia-Ukraine conflict has stretched the global food supply ranging from corn and wheat to potash fertiliSers, and pushed their prices to record highs, highlighted the latest of a concrete effort from the Chinese government to secure the spring ploughing of staple grains and bumper harvest against the potential impact of geopolitical tensions.
According to the notice which identified the priority work for China’s food production in 2022 and supportive policies, local authorities will release one-time subsidies to farmers to alleviate the impact of agricultural materials’ price hikes, the report said.
Authorities will also offer subsidies to corn, soybean, and rice producers, raising the minimum purchase price of rice and wheat, as well as implementing planting subsidies to farmers who boost the crop cultivation of corn and soybeans.
The notice comes as Chinese authorities spare no effort to raise domestic production in spring ploughing season, which started from early April. Against the backdrop of tensions between Russia and Ukraine, spring ploughing is deemed as a critical cultivation season for Chinese farmers to boost wheat, corn, soybean, and rice, which will be harvested from July to October the same year, the report said.
–IANS