A harvester works in a corn field at Deping Township of Linyi County, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 9, 2024. The autumn grain harvest season has begun across the country. (Photo: Xinhua)

 


China's grain harvest in 2024 hit a new record high, surpassing 1.4 trillion jin (706.5 million tons) for the first time, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Monday. 

The latest data from the NBS revealed that China's total grain production reached 1.413 trillion jin, rising by 1.6 percent year-on-year. This marks the first time the national grain output has exceeded the 700-million-ton threshold, after nine consecutive years of production above 650 million tons.

The summer grain harvest totaled 299.78 billion jin, an increase of 7.48 billion jin. Autumn crop areas grew steadily, and despite natural disasters which caused minimal damages, overall autumn grain yields were higher than previous years.  

In addition to structural adjustments, including an expanded planting area for high-yield corn that boosted autumn grain production, total cereal output reached 1.3046 trillion jin, marking a year-on-year increase of 21.71 billion jin. Rice, wheat, and corn all saw steady gains.

Specifically, autumn grain production amounted to 1.05687 trillion jin, a 1.4-percent increase of 15.03 billion jin. Both the total sown area and yields grew, with the national planting area for grain crops rising to 1.79 billion mu (approximately 119.3 million hectares), increasing by 5.258 million mu from a year earlier.

"This year, China ramped up government fiscal support for grain harvest, by raising minimum purchase prices for wheat and rice, stabilizing subsidies for farmland protection, and increasing other benefits for farmers," Wei Fenghua, deputy director of the Rural Division of the NBS said in a statement seen on the NBS website on Friday.



Global Times