March 8, 2011

China's Hebei to expand grain capacity in 2011-15

North China's Hebei province will add five million tonnes of grain production capacity during the 2011-15 period in an effort to ensure national grain security, said Zhao Guoling, head of Hebei Provincial Department of Agriculture office.

The target is made in accordance with the national plan of increasing 50 million tonnes of grain capacity in the following five years to make the total reach more than 540 million tonnes.

Hebei is one of the country's 13 major grain-producing provinces. Its grain output reached 29.1 million tonnes in 2009, marking a bumper harvest for the sixth consecutive years.

According to Zhao, by 2015, high-quality seeds will cover more than 98% of the province's grain crops, while its planting area of high-quality wheat and corn will account for 90% and 80% respectively of the total acreage.

Meanwhile, to promote grain production and boost farmers' planting enthusiasm, the provincial government will give more subsidies for research and development of new grain products, he added.