July 7, 2008

 

Seeking to dispel notions that China's fast-rising consumption is contributing to a surge in world grain prices, an agricultural official highlighted that China has supplied 95 percent of its grain needs in the last decade.

 

Li Zhengdong, director of the International Cooperation Department under the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), told the Beijing Youth Daily that the Chinese government had prioritized food security and grain self-sufficiency.

 

Except for 2004, China has mostly been a net exporter of grain, he said, adding that grain security in China is guaranteed.

 

China's grain output has been increasing since 2003. Output in 2007 was 500 billion kilogrammes, a 16-percent increase from 2003.

 

For the fifth year running, China is expecting a bumper summer grain harvest.

 

The fact that the world's most populous country has been feeding its people on its own is a major contribution to the world's grain security, said the official.

 

China's ratio of grain reserves to consumption is higher than the 17 to 18 percent level, which is regarded as a safe minimum for global stocks, said the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planner, in May.

 

Since late last year, China has decided to strictly control grain export to ensure domestic supply and fight inflation, abolishing tax rebates, levying temporary duties, and imposing quotas on the export of some grain products like rice and wheat.

 

Then as of Jan. 1 this year, the country decided to levy export tax on wheat, corn, rice, soy and relevant processed products. The export tax rates ranged from five to 25 percent and would be effective for the whole year.

 

These measures have partly paid off. China's grain exports fell 77 percent in the first five months of the year.

 

Li said the jump in international grain prices was attributed to such factors as the rise of living costs owing to soaring oil prices, rapid development of biofuel and increasing demand for grain.