How a traditional grain main sales area holds the "Chinese rice bowl"?

In autumn and October, Chen Jinliang, a major grain farmer, ushered in a new "harvest season.
"
Golden rice is about to be harvested on a large scale, and crabs farmed in rice paddies are also selling well
on e-commerce platforms.

"Another bumper year!" Looking at the harvest scene in front of him, Chen Jinliang couldn't close his mouth
with a smile.

Chen Jinliang is a farmer
in Baodi District, Tianjin.
In 20 years, he has expanded the land he contracted from more than 100 acres to more than 2,000 acres
.

Chen Jinliang's continuous expansion of grain and agricultural sideline products production is supported by the growing popularity of China's new concept of food security, the strict protection of arable land, and the rapid progress
of agricultural science and technology.

"In the early years, I was worried
when it was time to plant and harvest the rice.
" Chen Jinliang said that in those years, hiring some people to plant rice was also too busy, and harvesting more than 100 mu of rice required more than 10 people to work for many days
.

Now, things are very different
.
Chen Jinliang's more than 2,000 acres of rice can be harvested within a week by a few harvesters
.

"We are no longer traditional farming facing the loess with our backs to the sky
.
" Chen Jinliang said
.
Chen Jinliang, who had freed his hands, began to breed crabs in the rice fields, realizing his wish
to "earn two shares of money on one piece of land".

A local rice breeder is doing another trick to keep farmers on their bread income
.

"Breed a good seed, five more buckets of good rice
.
" Yu Fu'an, a researcher at the Tianjin Quality Agricultural Products Development Demonstration Center, said
.

Yu Fu'an and his colleagues have been working in the experimental field for nearly 40 years
.
Today, he and his team have successfully cultivated 40 high-quality rice varieties, achieving the goals of
high yield, high quality and strong disease resistance.
These varieties are not only widely cultivated in Tianjin, but also spread to more than 10 other regions
.

"Good seeds have helped reduce disaster risk, with yields increasing by more than
15 percent in some varieties.
" Yu Fuan said
.

"Eat for a long time"
.
The experience of Chen Jinliang and Yu Fu'an is a microcosm
of Tianjin, a metropolis and traditional grain sales area, and the country's main grain producing area and production and marketing balance area.

According to data from the Tianjin Municipal Agricultural and Rural Committee, Tianjin's grain output has increased by an average of 4.
5%
annually since it first exceeded 2 million tons in 2016.
The self-sufficiency rate in food rations has increased from 35 per cent to 65 per cent in the last 10 years
.

As a super-large city with a population of about 14 million, Tianjin has long had a low grain self-sufficiency rate due to its large number of people and small land, ranking one of
the seven main grain sales areas in the country.

In recent years, under the guidance of the Chinese government's policy of "the main production area, the main sales area, and the production and marketing balance area all have the responsibility to ensure the area and output, the rice bowl must be served together, and the responsibility must be shouldered together", the "food security concept" of Tianjin, a traditional main sales area, has undergone new changes
.

Keeping the red line of cultivated land is a top priority
.
Xu Tingmin, director of the farmland construction management division of the Tianjin Municipal Agricultural and Rural Committee, said that Tianjin strictly requires that "farmland is farmland, and it must be good land", and focuses on permanent basic farmland to implement high-standard farmland construction
.

In the past 10 years, Tianjin has built nearly 4 million mu of high-standard farmland with guaranteed harvest in drought and flood, stable yield and high yield, and the quality of cultivated land in the city has increased by an average of one grade
.
According to the assessment of agricultural experts, through the construction of high-standard farmland, the average yield of cultivated land in the Tianjin project area has increased by more than
100 kg per mu.

"In particular, the land that used to depend on the sky for food has changed from one season of rain-raising corn to two crops of wheat and corn, which has greatly improved the index
of grain replanting.
" Xu Tingmin said
.

It is necessary to hide grain in the ground as well as in technology
.
Tianjin has put scientific and technological wings
on increasing grain production by popularizing agricultural science and technology equipment and realizing the development of high-quality seed industry.
At present, the coverage rate of improved seeds of Tianjin's main crops has reached more than 90%, and all rice uses independent varieties
.

"Various subsidies have allowed farmers to see 'real money'
.
" Chen Jinliang said
.

According to a survey by the Tianjin Investigation Corps of the National Bureau of Statistics, in the past 10 years, Tianjin has successively implemented precise subsidy policies
such as direct grain subsidies, subsidies for improved seeds, and the purchase of agricultural machinery and tools.

A set of data illustrates the change in farmers' enthusiasm for growing grain – in 2021, the sown area of grain in Tianjin reached 5.
602 million mu, compared with 4.
844 million mu
in 2012.

The change in Tianjin's food security concept and capacity is an aspect
of China's food security.
According to data released by China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, China's grain production capacity has steadily increased, and the current per capita grain possession has reached 483 kilograms, higher than the internationally recognized food security line
of 400 kilograms.
This has effectively ensured food security
in a country with a population of more than 1.
4 billion.

China has made a significant contribution
to the world by successfully ensuring food security.
Agricultural experts say that while meeting its own food needs and reducing food imports, China has also helped reduce the number
of hungry people around the world through exports within its capacity and selfless technical assistance.
For example, China's rice seeds have been sown in many countries and regions around the world, directly benefiting
local people.
(Editor Li Chuang)