Nov 18, 2005

China's Heilongjiang expects record 2005 grain harvest

Local authorities in China's north-eastern province of Heilongjiang said they expected the region to achieve a record grain harvest this year at 36 million tonnes, up 14.8 percent from the previous year.

Authorities have been issuing several preferential policies to support grain production there since 2004.

Local farmers were exempted from agriculture taxes and granted grain-planting subsidies.

According to local authorities, grain production area in Heilongjiang would total 9.87 million hectares this year, up 0.6 percent compared with the previous year.

Meanwhile, the provincial government has allocated RMB260 million (about US$32.5 million) to develop farm mechanisation, in order to encourage grain production and help farmers achieve higher income from grain-planting.