How was China's grain base built?

Do we need to stockpile food?

Do we really not have enough food?

First of all, we don't need to stockpile food.

The food is enough

According to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics

my country's grain production is generally improving

This year, my country's summer grain output reached 291.6 billion jin, an increase of 5.93 billion jin

Among them, the output of early rice was 56 billion jin, an increase of 1.45 billion jin

Although Henan, Shanxi, Shaanxi and other places

Affected by severe floods and droughts, autumn grain production has decreased

However, most other major grain-producing areas achieved increased production

The national grain output will remain stable at more than 1.3 trillion jin for seven consecutive years

Laying a solid foundation for domestic grain market supply

So don't worry about not having enough food.

Changsha Longping Rice Museum

my country's grain production

Mainly includes wheat, rice and coarse grains

Among them, wheat, rice and corn are the main

According to the different natural conditions and production factors in different places

my country has formed nine major commercial grain bases

Different from other regions

Food not produced for sale

Commercial grain is produced only for sale

The food produced by these bases is not only of high quality

And there are many

The nine commercial grain bases are divided into four categories

First, the high-yield commercial grain base in the south

Including the Yangtze River Delta, Jianghan Plain, Poyang Lake Plain

Dongting Lake Plain, Pearl River Delta, etc.

The second is the commercial grain base in the Huaihe Plain

Including northern Jiangsu and northern Anhui

They are located in the southern part of the North China Plain.

Regional layout of large-scale advantageous commercial grain bases across the country

Image from China National Geography, Issue 1, 2008

The third is the well-known Northeast commercial grain base

Includes the Sanjiang Plain, Songnen Plain and Liaohe Plain

The last category is the commercial grain base in the arid areas of Northwest China

Including Hexi Corridor, Ningxia Hetao and other areas

Although this type of commercial grain base

Not among the nine bases

But they are not conducive to the food supply in the northwest region

It also played a significant role

Southern High-yield Commercial Grain Base

In the Song Dynasty, there was a saying that goes “When Suzhou and Changzhou are prosperous, the whole world will be prosperous.”

The proverb "When Suzhou and Huzhou are prosperous, the whole world is prosperous"

In the Ming Dynasty, there was a saying: "When Huguang (Hubei and Hunan) are prosperous, the whole world will be prosperous."

In the Qing Dynasty, there was a saying that "If Hunan is prosperous, the whole world will be prosperous."

Until today

These plain areas in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, such as Suzhou, Changzhou, Huguang, etc.

It is still China's traditional granary.

This area includes the Taihu Plain and the Jianghan Plain.

Poyang Lake Plain, Dongting Lake Plain and other areas in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River

Plus the equally rich Pearl River Delta

It constitutes a rich commercial grain base in the south

These places have many people and little land, and are located in the subtropical

Excellent natural conditions and long crop growing season

It can be harvested multiple times a year and has a long history of cultivation

Abundant labor force and a tradition of intensive farming

Farmland infrastructure construction has a certain foundation

Good production conditions such as water conservancy and fertilizer

The average grain yield per unit area is about 30-50% higher than the national average.

The food commodity rate is 29%

Commercial grain provided annually

Accounting for more than 60% of the national base commercial grain

Therefore, it is the most important commercial grain base in my country.

Known as China's "Rice Granary"

According to the 2020 grain production statistics

The total grain output in China was 669.49 million tons.

The production in this region reached 163.51 million tons

It accounts for nearly 25% of the country's total grain output

Unlike the Yangtze River Delta region,

Further south, the only large granary in the Pearl River Basin

The Pearl River Delta was ultimately succumbed to the tide of industrialization

The Pearl River Delta leads China's economy

It is no longer the idyllic scene of the "Mulberry Pond" in the past.

Large tracts of farmland were developed during the rapid urban expansion.

As early as 1980-1996

The average annual decline rate of grain production in the Pearl River Delta is 1.2%

The food self-sufficiency rate is less than 60%, and there is a serious shortage.

Today, the Pearl River Delta is already largely dependent on

Grain was transferred from other parts of the country.

Huaihe Plain Commercial Grain Base

The northern part of the Yangtze River Delta is the Huanghuaihai granary production area

Located in the southern part of the North China Plain

The terrain here is flat and the soil is deep

Although the heat and frost-free period are lower than those in the south of the Yangtze River,

But it is basically higher than the north of the Yellow River

It is an important food production area in my country with rotation of water and dryland crops.

It has a warm temperate-subtropical, humid-semi-humid monsoon climate.

The annual average temperature is between 12℃ and 16℃

The frost-free period is 180-240 days from north to south.

The annual precipitation is about 500-900 mm, which is suitable for agricultural development.

Only Henan Province

Not only does it account for 6.2% of the country’s arable land

Produces 10% of China's food

Wheat production accounts for 1/4 of China's

More than 40 billion jin are exported to other provinces every year.

Commercial raw grains and grain products

The increase in summer grain production in 2020 accounted for more than half of the country's total increase

It is the first province in China's grain development history to achieve 100 billion jin

Northeast Commercial Grain Base

Further north, we reach the well-known Northeast Commercial Grain Base.

It is composed of three plains.

Because it has many similarities

This article only takes the Sanjiang Plain as an example

By Heilongjiang, Songhuajiang and Wusulijiang

The Sanjiang Plain, formed by alluvial deposits, is a vast wilderness with few people.

The forest is dense, the swamps are everywhere, and wild beasts roam in the forest.

Hundreds of birds fly low in the sky, and it was called "Northern Wilderness" at that time

A truly sparsely populated place

But here is rare in other areas

High nutrient soil - dark brown soil

Black soil mainly composed of white pulp soil, black soil and meadow soil

Its soil is known for its "deep" humus layer.

Generally 70 cm thick, and the thickest can reach 100 cm

Mainly distributed in the slightly undulating hills in the western part of the plain

The total area is about 666,900 hectares

Therefore, the abundance of soil nutrients is a major advantage here.

Image from China National Geography, Issue 11, 2019

Now, the largest

The most mechanized farms

The main crops in Sanjiang Plain are soybean, corn and rice.

Among them, only one area, Jiansanjiang,

The annual grain output reached 3.4 million tons

Because the climate in the Northeast is cold

Long growing season for crops

Cold climate

Effectively suppress the "natural enemies" of crops, pests and diseases

Maximizing the nutrients in black soil

Grain output of the three northeastern provinces in 2018

It accounts for about 20.3% of the country's total grain output.

It is the "ballast stone" for maintaining national food security

Providing food supplies to more than ten provinces in my country

Together with the Huaihe Commercial Grain Base

From the perspective of my country's grain production

Production in the North has surpassed that in the South

Since ancient times, "Jiangsu and Zhejiang are prosperous, Huguang is prosperous, and the whole world is prosperous"

It has quietly changed to "The Northeast is ripe, the Huaihe River is ripe, and the world is full"

Changes in grain production in northern and southern my country from 1949 to 2019

Commercial grain base in the arid areas of Northwest China

The granary of the Northwest includes the Hetao Plain in Inner Mongolia

Ningxia Plain, Hexi Corridor and Xinjiang Agricultural Reclamation Area

It is deep inland, with annual rainfall of less than 250 mm.

The climate is dry and the growing season is short

Only one harvest per year

In the national statistical reports of major food crops

The Northwest's granary only has a slight advantage in potatoes

Potato harvest in Ningxia

The Hetao Plain in Inner Mongolia and Ningxia has many wetlands

It has long been known as "Jiangnan outside the Great Wall".

The Yellow River alluvial deposits created flat farmland

There is also the convenience of river irrigation

Successful efforts to control land salinization in recent years

Rice is more widely grown

In 2019, the rice yield per mu in the Hetao Plain has reached 1,000 kilograms

The dry northwestern plateau also has undulating rice fields.

Ningxia rice fields

In addition to the nine major commercial grain bases

There are also small and medium-sized granaries blooming everywhere - the Ili River Valley

Lhasa River Valley, Wei River Valley, Fen River Valley, etc.

It can basically meet the region's food self-sufficiency

Tibet's unique river valley agriculture

The grain is not only high in yield but also high in quality

In fact, since 2010

China's per capita grain possession continues to be higher than the world average

In 2019, China's per capita grain possession exceeded 470 kilograms

Far higher than the international food security standard of 400 kilograms per capita

Moreover, my country's self-sufficiency rate of wheat and corn is

The proportion of our food rations remains above 98%.

Can also be self-sufficient

In addition, from the perspective of inventory

China's grain inventory consumption ratio is much higher than

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's safety level is 17% to 18%.

Especially the stocks of wheat and rice, the two major staple foods

This is roughly equivalent to the annual consumption of the entire nation.

So there is no need to stock up on food.

Food is the first necessity of the people

Chinese people's rice bowl

Already firmly in my hands

References:

"Announcement of the National Bureau of Statistics on Grain Production Data in 2018"

"Announcement of the National Bureau of Statistics on Grain Production Data in 2020"

The focus of my country's grain production has further shifted northward. China Grain Economy. 2020, (07), 49-52

topic

What kind of food do you like best?

- END -

Image source: TuChong, Visual China

Editor/ Kunkun

References

Henan, China's granary and kitchen

Which granary is "Tianfu"?

Houtao: "River God" Creates Rice Grain River