Grain production must not be taken lightly.

China's economy has entered a new normal, and new changes and characteristics have emerged in the grain field. In early January 2015, at the national grain circulation work conference held by the State Grain Administration, Ren Zhengxiao, director of the State Grain Administration, commented that "the grain market situation in 2014 is complicated, the pressure on collection and storage is unprecedented, and the task of reform and development is arduous."

As a country with a large population, China has always attached importance to food security. This requires the central and local governments to share responsibility. At the end of last year, the State Council issued the first special document on the full implementation of local governments' responsibilities for food security. At present, 10 provinces have issued opinions on implementation. Among them, 4 provinces have incorporated it into the government target responsibility assessment system, and 5 provinces have adopted the methods of signing food security responsibility letters step by step and establishing food security supervision and assessment mechanism to implement food security responsibility.

Ren Zhengxiao said: this year is the first year for the full implementation of the document, and in accordance with the requirements of the State Council, the National Development and Reform Commission and the State Grain Administration are stepping up efforts to formulate supervision and assessment methods in conjunction with relevant departments. and will regularly organize people's governments at the provincial level to assess the implementation of the responsibility system for provincial governors of food security.

He said: the basic national conditions of our country, which has a large population and little land and little water, will make it more and more difficult for grain production to continue to grow steadily, and the traditional and non-traditional constraints affecting food security will become increasingly prominent. Ensuring national food security still faces tremendous pressure and challenges. Once there is a problem in grain production, it may not be able to recover for several years, and this must not be taken lightly.

There is a phenomenon of relaxing grain production in some places.

Daily newspaper: at the end of last year, the State Council issued several opinions on establishing and improving the responsibility system of provincial governors for food security, which is the first special document issued by the State Council on the full implementation of local governments' responsibility for food security. What is the background of the opinion? In the more than half a year since the introduction of the "opinion", how has the local government and grain departments implemented it?

Ren Zhengxiao: food is the most important thing for the people. Food security is an important foundation for economic development, social stability and national security. For China, a large country with a population of more than 1.3 billion, solving the problem of food is always the top priority of governing the country. Since China fully liberalized the grain purchase and sale market in 2004, all regions have actively fulfilled the responsibilities of grain production, circulation and reserve in accordance with the decisions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, and the overall situation of grain work is good. However, after the "eleventh consecutive increase" in grain production, there are more difficulties and greater challenges in continuing to stabilize and increase grain production. At the same time, under the background of successive bumper harvests and relatively loose supply and demand of some grain varieties, there exists the phenomenon of relaxing grain production and neglecting grain circulation in some places, and the consciousness of consciously taking responsibility for safeguarding national food security needs to be further strengthened.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the Central Committee has raised the national food security to a new height and clearly proposed to implement the national food security strategy of "giving priority to ourselves, gaining a foothold at home, ensuring production capacity, moderate import, and scientific and technological support." it stressed the need to persist in ensuring national food security as the primary task of economic work and promoting agricultural modernization, and to ensure basic self-sufficiency in grain and absolute safety of food rations. In particular, General Secretary Xi Jinping made a series of important instructions on ensuring national food security, stressing that "Chinese people's rice bowls should be firmly in their own hands at all times," and "our rice bowls should be mainly filled with Chinese food." The central government bears the primary responsibility for ensuring national food security, and the people's governments of all provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities) bear the main responsibility for ensuring food security in their respective regions. Therefore, after careful investigation and study and fully soliciting the opinions of local people's governments and relevant state departments, the State Council issued "some opinions on establishing and improving the Governor responsibility system for Food Security" (Guofa (2014) No. 69). It further clarified the powers and responsibilities of the people's governments at the provincial level in ensuring regional food security, and made comprehensive arrangements for the establishment and improvement of the provincial governor responsibility system for food security.

The responsibility system of provincial governors for food security is a basic system to ensure national food security. the promulgation of document No. 69 of the State Council is a milestone in China's grain work in the new period. At present, 10 provinces have issued implementation opinions, and other provincial people's governments are also stepping up efforts to study and formulate implementation opinions; four provinces have incorporated food security responsibility into the government target responsibility assessment system, and five provinces have adopted such methods as signing food security responsibility letters step by step and establishing food security supervision and assessment mechanisms to implement food security responsibilities.

The year 2015 is the first year to fully implement the State Council's "opinions on establishing and improving the Governor responsibility system for Food Security". In accordance with the requirements of the State Council, the National Development and Reform Commission and the State Grain Administration are working with relevant departments to formulate supervision and assessment methods, and will regularly organize people's governments at the provincial level to assess the implementation of the provincial governor responsibility system.

We cannot simply say that the quantity of grain is "too much" or "not enough".

Daily newspaper: during the "two sessions" this year, some members of the agricultural group said that "there is too much grain" and that "there is not enough grain but not enough grain." so is there too much grain or not enough grain? Why?

Ren Zhengxiao: for China, a large country with a population of more than 1.3 billion, it is necessary to "firmly hold the rice bowl in our own hands." stable grain production capacity, sufficient grain reserves, and smooth and efficient collection, storage and supply system are indispensable. When we make any judgment on the food security situation, we should comprehensively consider the above factors and carefully analyze them in the light of the economic, energy, financial and other aspects, instead of simply saying that the quantity of grain is "large" or "insufficient."

The two statements you mentioned only reflect part of the current food supply and demand from one aspect.

Let's start with "more". In recent years, international and domestic grain has had bumper harvests year after year, the growth rate of global grain consumption, especially industrial consumption, has obviously slowed down, and the purchase volume and inventory of domestic policy grain have been increasing continuously. some grain varieties, such as corn and rice, show a "three-high superposition" of high yield, high purchase and high inventory, and some major grain producing areas are facing tremendous pressure of collection and storage. From this point of view, it seems that there is too much grain.

Besides, "not enough". Generally speaking, although the total grain supply and demand in China is basically balanced, the regional distribution is very uneven and there are great differences among varieties. From the perspective of regional distribution, the grain output of China's 13 major grain producing areas accounts for 76 percent of the country's total output, of which seven northern major producing areas, such as Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Liao, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Shandong and Henan, account for nearly 50 percent of the country's total output. Grain stocks in the main producing and selling areas account for 71% and 9% of the country's total, respectively, and consumption accounts for 62% and 17%, respectively. From the perspective of variety structure, except for corn and rice, wheat has been in short supply for four consecutive years, and the gap between production and demand of soybean is still very large, and the degree of external dependence is very high. From this point of view, there is indeed not enough grain in some areas and varieties.

At the same time, in the long run, the foundation of China's food security is not stable, and food security is also faced with many unstable and uncertain factors. At present, the per capita share of grain in China is less than 900jin, which is only about 1/3 of that of developed countries. With the increase of population and the rapid progress of industrialization and urbanization, grain consumption demand will maintain rigid growth, while the basic national conditions of our country with large population, land and water shortage will make it more and more difficult for grain production to continue to grow steadily. Traditional and non-traditional constraints affecting food security will become increasingly prominent, and ensuring national food security is still facing tremendous pressure and challenges. Once there is a problem in grain production, it may not be able to recover for several years, and this must not be taken lightly.

Therefore, at present, we should not only properly solve the problems of overstocking of some grain varieties and great pressure on collection and storage in major producing areas, but also keep a clear head, do not relax the string of food security at all times, and do not lightly say that "there is too much grain" at any time. It is necessary to adhere to the general tone of the work of striving for progress in the midst of stability, actively adapt to the new normal of economic development, closely centering on the primary task of ensuring national food security, speed up the modernization of agriculture and the modernization of grain circulation capacity, and fully implement the responsibility for food security. we will ensure basic self-sufficiency in grain and absolute safety in food rations, and provide strong support for sustained and healthy economic and social development.