Price Reform of Agricultural products: reforming subsidy Policy and improving Competitiveness with High efficiency

"some opinions on promoting the reform of the price mechanism" (hereinafter referred to as "opinions") put forward that the price formation mechanism of agricultural products will be improved, and the prices of agricultural products are mainly determined by the market. The "opinion" is clear: adjust and improve the "yellow box" (those policies that distort production and trade are called the "yellow box" policy according to the Agriculture Agreement), gradually expand the scale and scope of the "green box" support policy, continue to implement and improve the minimum purchase price policy for rice and wheat, reform and improve the corn purchase and storage system, and continue to carry out the pilot reform of the target price of cotton and soybean. We will improve the methods for the distribution of subsidies.

Over the years, the agricultural sector has been exploring agricultural support policies that do not distort the market and are more efficient, with more "green boxes" and less "yellow boxes". A source from the Ministry of Agriculture told the Daily Economic News that "what is being carried out is a pilot project on the target price of soybeans and cotton, which also represents the reform direction of most agricultural products, including grain varieties, in the future, and the current agricultural subsidy measures are relatively inefficient." and in fact caused a certain degree of market distortion, the so-called 'foreign goods' into the market, 'domestic goods' into the warehouse.

The "yellow box" to "green box" node has arrived.

According to the promise made when China joined the WTO, agricultural subsidies cannot exceed 8.5% of agricultural output value, and with the gradual increase in the cost of agricultural production, the current agricultural subsidy policy is approaching the top of the "yellow box".

At present, the prices of the vast majority of agricultural products in China have been determined by market supply and demand, and the government has really intervened in the prices. it mainly includes the minimum purchase price policy for two key grain varieties of rice and wheat in the main producing areas since 2004 and 2006, and the temporary purchase and storage of major agricultural products such as corn, rapeseed and cotton since 2008.

Under the support of the purchase of supporting the market and temporary storage prices, the prices of domestic agricultural products are "upside down" with the international prices. At present, the international prices of soybean, corn and wheat are 1175 yuan, 923 yuan and 626 yuan per ton lower than the domestic prices. "when China joined the WTO, it promised that agricultural subsidies should not exceed 8.5% of agricultural output value, which is a restriction on government subsidies that distort production and trade, and now some of our product subsidies have exceeded the limit." Han Jun, deputy director of the Office of the Central Financial and Economic leading Group, said a few days ago that as the squeezing effect of the rising "floor" of domestic grain production costs became more and more obvious, it is now necessary to turn some "yellow box" subsidies into "green boxes".

Strengthen the price monitoring of agricultural products

"although the protection of agricultural products has not been reduced, there is a trend in Europe, the United States, Japan, South Korea and other countries to reduce the support of agricultural subsidies and pay more attention to improving the competitiveness of their agricultural industries." Zhang Hongyu, director of the Department of Economic Management of the Ministry of Agriculture, said in an exclusive interview with the Daily Economic News: "China should also focus on considering the 'transformation mode and structure' of agriculture from the perspective of improving the ability of sustainable development of agriculture." take an intensive road of modern agricultural development that is efficient in agricultural industry, safe in products, resource-saving and environmentally friendly. "

According to the "opinion," it will also strengthen the cost survey and price monitoring of agricultural products, speed up the establishment of a global agricultural data investigation and analysis system, and provide important support for the government to formulate policies such as agricultural prices and agricultural subsidies. "the survey data of the cost of agricultural products is an effective basis for scientifically formulating a series of policies to benefit farmers, especially in the current situation of rising production costs of agricultural products." A person engaged in local statistics told the reporter, "it is necessary to understand the planting and breeding habits of local farmers, and grasp information such as farmers' preferences for the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, land transfer prices, and marketing costs of agricultural products." "according to Internet + 's thinking, if big data can be formed with the production cost of agricultural products, market price fluctuations, international price reference, and even the cost comparison of foreign agricultural products, it will have a far-reaching impact on the development of China's agriculture." Li Guoxiang, a researcher at the Rural Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, believes that "this can not only help solve the outstanding problems in China's agriculture, but also bring broad application prospects in agricultural socialized services, agricultural science and technology, and so on."