Technicians inside a seedling factory in Central China's Henan Province inspect plant growth on March 21, 2023. The nurtured seedlings will be used for planting in paddy rice fields. The Chinese seed industry is still working to close the gap with developed agricultural economies, according to media reports, citing experts. Photo: cnsphoto

The contribution of improved seeds to China's grain yield growth has reached 45 percent, but there is still room for improvement as the country has deployed improved seeds across the agricultural industry, said China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MOA) on Tuesday. 
 
During a press conference held by the MOA, an official from the department said China's corn output per mu (666.67 square meters) has been raised by 27 percent in the past decade thanks to the improved seeds, and the output of wheat per mu was lifted from 300 to 387.3 kilograms.  

In 2021, China's experimental soybean output per mu stood between 149 and 236 kilograms, and the experimental corn output per mu reached 565 to 1,043 kilograms, with both levels approaching and even surpassing that in the US. The standard soybean and corn output only reached 60 to 70 percent of the US level, said the MOA.  

Boosted by improved seeds, China's annual grain output has been increased from 100 million tons to more than 650 million tons since 1949, and the output per mu was lifted from 68.6 kilograms to 387 kilograms, the MOA data showed. 

At present, the contribution rate from improved seeds to China's agricultural output growth has reached only 45 percent, still below the 60 percent level in developed countries including European countries and the US, said the MOA. 

The official from the MOA noted that China's seed breeding still has great potential as more biotechnologies will be implemented in agriculture. 

In 2022, the proportion of high-quality rice seeds surpassed 60 percent, and the qualification rate of seeds in ongoing 2023 spring ploughing stood at 98 percent.