Ministry of Agriculture: corn inventory needs to be adjusted and optimized structure

At present, grain supply and demand at home and abroad is generally loose, international grain prices are low, and the gap between domestic and foreign grain prices is still large.

On November 19, at the "press briefing on current grain-related policies" jointly held by the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance, the State Grain Administration, the Agricultural Development Bank of China and the China Grain Reserve Corporation, a person in charge of the State Grain Administration said that there is greater downward pressure on domestic grain prices.

Support the market, purchase and stabilize the market and expect grain prices to stabilize.

According to monitoring, in mid-November 2015, the domestic and foreign price differences of wheat, corn and rice were about 700 yuan, 630 yuan and 760 yuan per ton, respectively.

The reason why grain prices will continue to decline is that China's grain production has had bumper harvests for many years, while the growth rate of consumption has slowed obviously. although the total amount of supply and demand is basically balanced, the contradiction in the structure of varieties is prominent, the supply of rice exceeds demand, and there is a phased surplus of corn. in addition, imports of corn substitutes such as sorghum and barley have increased significantly.

To this end, the state has taken measures such as timely start of collection and storage to guide the market to be expected to be stable, and the domestic grain market and prices tend to be stable at present.

The 2015 minimum purchase price for wheat ended at the end of September, and the wheat market price fell briefly in early October. On October 10, the state announced the minimum purchase price for wheat in 2016, making it clear that the minimum purchase price for wheat in 2016 remained unchanged at the 2015 level, stabilizing market expectations and stabilizing wheat prices.

A large number of middle and late rice have been on the market this year, and as the market prices in most production areas are lower than the minimum purchase price at the initial stage of listing, Anhui and other nine provinces promptly launched the implementation plan of the minimum purchase price for middle and late rice. At present, the market price of middle and late rice is basically stable at the lowest purchase price level.

Affected by the relationship between supply and demand and the macroeconomic situation, the corn market has continued to weaken since the beginning of this year, especially in September and October. With the full start of corn temporary storage acquisition on November 1, the current corn market prices in Northeast China have rebounded and stabilized, and corn market prices in North China have also risen in a restorative manner.

Reap a bumper harvest and push forward structural adjustment

On the day of the press briefing, Pan Wenbo, deputy director of the planting Management Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, said that this year's grain is another bumper harvest year and continues to be a bright spot in economic and social development. At present, the autumn and winter planting is coming to an end. Judging from the dispatching situation of the Ministry of Agriculture, the progress is smooth and the foundation is good.

Among them, the area of wheat increased slightly. It is estimated that the area of grain planted this autumn and winter will increase by 1.3 million mu, of which winter wheat will increase by more than 600,000 mu and potatoes by 800000 mu. In addition, structural adjustment will continue to move forward, affected by policy adjustment and declining planting efficiency. This year, the Huang-Huai-Hai and Yangtze River basins and other places will continue to reduce the area of cotton, and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River will reduce the area of rape. Third, the seedling condition is growing well.

Pan Wenbo said that the biggest concern is that the continuous development of the El Ni ñ o phenomenon since May 2014 has strengthened into the strongest El Ni ñ o phenomenon since the new century, and there is an increased chance of a warm winter this year, with the possibility of winter drought and prosperity.

In recent years, under the influence of the slowdown in the growth of consumer demand at home and abroad, the import impact of alternative products and other factors, the current corn supply exceeds demand, and the inventory has greatly increased, which has become a prominent problem in the current development of grain and agricultural production. ensuring the effective supply of grain and other agricultural products is the fundamental task of agriculture, and adjusting and optimizing the agricultural structure is also an important task of agriculture.

At the beginning of the year, the Ministry of Agriculture formulated and issued the "opinions on further adjusting and optimizing the Agricultural structure" on how to promote the adjustment of the agricultural structure. Recently, guidelines for maize structure adjustment in the "sickle bend" area have been formulated. The "sickle bend" area includes cold areas in the northeast, farming and animal husbandry ecotone in the north, wind and sand arid areas in the northwest, areas along the Taihang Mountains and rocky desertification areas in the southwest. Pan Wenbo said that at present, the Ministry of Agriculture is considering some ideas and objectives for the adjustment of the planting structure during the 13th five-year Plan period.

In addition, pilot demonstrations have been carried out. This year, 300 million yuan will be allocated to select 30 counties in the "three north" areas to carry out the pilot project of "changing grain to feed" to promote the combination of agriculture and animal husbandry. At the same time, special funds will be arranged to carry out pilot crop rotation of grain and beans in the fourth and fifth accumulated temperate zones such as Bei'an City, Heilongjiang Province, to explore the planting mode of combining land use and land cultivation.

The third is to do a good job in guidance services, strengthen policy publicity, and guide farmers to make rational arrangements for planting structure.

Pan Wenbo said: on the whole, various localities have taken the initiative to promote the adjustment of planting structure, and the results are obvious. For example, in Northeast China, where there is great pressure on corn stocks, the area of corn in high latitudes and arid areas will be reduced by 3 million mu this year, and cold-tolerant crops such as soybeans, miscellaneous grains and potatoes will be planted. In the "three north" ecotone of agriculture and animal husbandry, in accordance with the idea of breeding and the combination of agriculture and animal husbandry, we should reduce grain corn, plant silage corn, alfalfa and other forage crops, and actively develop herbivorous animal husbandry.

In the next step, the Ministry of Agriculture will vigorously promote the structural adjustment of corn in the "sickle bend" area. He said: the key measure is to do a good job in the docking of tasks. Next year, the "sickle bend" area, especially the northeast region, will reduce more than 10 million mu of corn, and will implement the task province by province, select alternative planting crops, and ensure that structural adjustment is promoted in a strong and orderly manner; the second is to strive for policy support. the key point is to strive for the implementation of subsidies for "grain to feed" and the construction of a reasonable rotation system, guide farmers to implement a reasonable pattern of crop rotation, improve soil structure, raise the level of soil fertility, and realize the combination of planting and raising land. The third is to strengthen guidance services, organize experts to formulate technical plans for corn structural adjustment in the "sickle bend" area, strengthen classified guidance, carry out guidance services, and implement various technical measures for structural adjustment in accordance with local conditions.