Farmers harvest rice with harvesting machineries in Huai'an, East China's Jiangsu Province. Photo: VCG

China's grain output in 2022 hit a new record high, the country's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Monday, with a slight increase of 0.5 percent over 2021's figures.

The combined output of summer grain, early season rice and autumn grain of 31 localities in the Chinese mainland reached nearly 1.3731 trillion jin, or 686.53 billion kilograms (kg) in 2022, up 7.4 billion jin from last year.

A slight year-on-year increase of 0.5 percent was recorded, pushing the 2022 figure to a new record high and also marking the eighth consecutive year that the country's total grain production has exceeded 650 billion kg.

Among the total output, grain output excluding potatoes and beans reached 1.2665 trillion jin, an increase of one billion jin over 2021.

The area of cultivated farmland stood at 1.775 billion mu (118.33 million hectares), up 0.6 percent from last year. Per unit output of grain reached 387 kg per mu, the NBS said.

The bumper harvest comes despite extreme regional weather conditions, including rare autumn flooding in the northern part of the country and extended drought and high temperature in the south, on top of COVID-induced disruptions, said Wang Guirong, an NBS official.

The harvest has laid a solid foundation for China to cope with a complex and volatile international environment, overcome risks and challenges, and stabilize economic growth and ensure the economy expands within reasonable range, Wang added.

The harvest also made positive contribution in stabilizing the global grain market and ensuring food security, Wang noted.

Global Times