Hold the red line of cultivated land and grasp the initiative in food security
Today’s editorial
Jin Yuhong
The basic national conditions of our country with a large population and a small land area determine that we must use the power of the whole country to solve the food problem of 1.4 billion people. With the global pandemic of the new crown epidemic and the increasing uncertainty in the supply of international agricultural products, we must always tighten the string of national food security in order to stabilize domestic food production in response to uncertainties brought about by changes in the international situation. Only by continuously consolidating and improving the comprehensive grain production capacity, ensuring basic self-sufficiency in grains and absolute security of rations, can we truly grasp the initiative in national food security.
On February 22, the State Council Information Office held a press conference to introduce the situation of comprehensively promoting rural revitalization and accelerating agricultural and rural modernization. Tang Renjian, director of the Central Agriculture Office and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, stated that the next step will be to take hard measures to “grow teeth”, implement the most stringent farmland protection system, and resolutely curb the “non-agriculturalization” of cultivated land and prevent the “non-grainization” of cultivated land. The red line of 1.8 billion acres of arable land will be kept firmly, and 1.55 billion acres of permanent basic farmland will be mainly planted with annual crops such as food and melons and vegetables, and 1.075 billion acres of high-standard farmland that is planned to be built must be guaranteed to grow food.
In 2020, the development of agriculture and rural areas has overcome the severe impact of the epidemic and maintained the momentum of steady progress and steady improvement, bringing the “13th Five-Year Plan” to a successful conclusion. On February 21, the “Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Comprehensively Promoting Rural Revitalization and Accelerating Agricultural and Rural Modernization” was released. This is the 18th Central No. 1 document to guide the work of “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” since the 21st century, and it describes China for the next five years. New blueprint for rural revitalization.
The Central Committee No. 1 document sets clear goals for the “Three Rural” work during the “14th Five-Year Plan” period. Three important tasks are to make important progress in agricultural and rural modernization, consolidate the results of poverty alleviation and improve the rural ecological environment. Although my country has eliminated absolute poverty, the low income of farmers and poor living environment are still outstanding shortcomings in social and economic development. The second centenary goal has started a new journey. The modernization of “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” must make up for shortcomings in order to successfully realize the goal of China’s modernization. In the next five years, China will be committed to making significant progress in rural construction and effectively improving the happiness of rural residents.
In recent years, my country’s grain production has been harvested year after year, which has effectively guaranteed national food security and provided solid support for stabilizing the overall situation of economic and social development. At the same time, there is also a tendency of “non-agriculturalization” and “non-grainization” of arable land in some areas. Some business entities have violated regulations to plant trees and dig ponds on permanent basic farmland, and some industrial and commercial capital transfers arable land to non-grain crops on a large scale. Development will affect national food security. The No. 1 Central Document highlights the deployment of the two key issues of seed and cultivated land, and clearly proposes to implement the strictest cultivated land protection system, resolutely curb the “non-agriculturalization” of cultivated land and prevent the “non-grainization” of cultivated land, so as to ensure that the grain output is stable at 1.3 More than one trillion catties.
The basic national conditions of our country with a large population and a small land area determine that we must use the power of the whole country to solve the food problem of 1.4 billion people. With the global pandemic of the new crown epidemic and the increasing uncertainty in the supply of international agricultural products, we must always tighten the string of national food security in order to stabilize domestic food production in response to uncertainties brought about by changes in the international situation. It is of great significance to stabilize policies, stabilize areas, and stabilize yields, adhere to multiple measures of arable land management, construction, and incentives, and strictly prevent the red line of 1.8 billion mu of arable land. Only by continuously consolidating and improving the comprehensive grain production capacity, ensuring basic self-sufficiency in grains and absolute security of rations, can we truly grasp the initiative in national food security.
To curb the “non-agriculturalization” of arable land and prevent the “non-grainization” of arable land, it is necessary to strengthen the supervision and control of grain production functional areas. All regions are not allowed to adjust the functional areas of grain production without authorization. In particular, some places simply interpret the adjustment of agricultural structure as the reduction of grain production and the use of cultivated land for other purposes. Changes in the nature of arable land and those that do not meet the delineation standards shall be eliminated and re-arranged in a timely manner to reverse the downward trend of grain planting area. Supervision departments should conduct comprehensive inspections of cultivated land protection, and include illegal occupation of cultivated land for greening and afforestation, lake landscaping, expansion of natural reserves, and arbitrary occupation and construction of houses into the assessment content of the provincial government’s responsibility for cultivated land protection. Leading cadres who are strict, negligent and dereliction of duty shall be held accountable in accordance with disciplines and regulations.
The No. 1 Central Document issued during the first year of the “14th Five-Year Plan” shows that the Party Central Committee attaches great importance to agricultural and rural work in the new development stage. The work of “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” is still extremely important, and we must not relax in the moment, and we must pay close attention to rural revitalization. After the completion of the poverty alleviation goals and tasks, it will gradually realize a smooth transition from concentrated resources to support poverty alleviation to comprehensive promotion of rural revitalization, and promote the historical shift of the focus of the “three rural” work. Stabilizing the fundamentals of agriculture and maintaining the foundation of the “three rural” are the “ballast stones” for contingency and opening new rounds. Only by accelerating the modernization of agriculture and implementing the most stringent farmland protection system can we secure our jobs. Firmly hold on to the initiative in food security.
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