Han Changfu, Minister of Agriculture, talking about Food Safety: the Agricultural sector should be responsible

As China's economy enters the new normal, reform enters the deep water area, and economic and social development enters a new stage, the internal and external environment of agricultural development is undergoing profound changes, so it is more urgent to speed up the construction of modern agriculture.

What is the most urgent task to promote the development of modern agriculture? How should we develop modern agriculture? The reporter interviewed Han Changfu, Minister of Agriculture, on these issues.

Han Changfu said: at present, the most urgent task for the agricultural sector to adapt to the new normal and promote the development of modern agriculture is to vigorously promote the transformation of agricultural development mode and structural adjustment.

He pointed out that China's agricultural modernization has been accelerated in recent years, but various risks and structural contradictions have also accumulated, prominently in that the constraints of the shortage of agricultural resources and the deterioration of the ecological environment have become increasingly prominent. the challenge of the structural change of rural labor force has become increasingly prominent, the imbalance of agricultural production structure has become increasingly prominent, and the contradiction between the low efficiency of agriculture and the inverted prices of agricultural products at home and abroad has become increasingly prominent. To deal with these practical challenges of agricultural development, we must speed up "changing the mode and adjusting the structure".

At the same time, he pointed out that to improve the quality and efficiency of agricultural development, there is also an urgent need to speed up the "transformation of the mode and structure" of agriculture. At present, the mode of agricultural development in China is still the coexistence of traditional and modern. Although the equipment conditions of agricultural technical facilities have been gradually improved, the problems of underdeveloped "capillaries", the lack of the "last kilometer" and the low utilization rate of agricultural inputs have not been fundamentally solved. Although the new type of business entities are developing rapidly, small-scale economic operations still account for the majority, which limits the improvement of agricultural labor productivity. Although China is a large country in the production of planting and breeding industry, the comparative advantages of agricultural regions have not been brought into full play, and the incomplete and unconnected agricultural industry chain is still a weakness.

On the other hand, China is facing a rare opportunity to speed up the "transformation of the mode and structure" of agriculture. Han Changfu said: at present, there is an adequate supply of major agricultural products in China, which provides a guarantee for the "transformation of the mode and structure" of agriculture; the full implementation of the new national food security strategy has left room for the "transformation of the mode and structure" of agriculture; the improvement of the consumption level of agricultural products has added a pulling force for the "transformation of the mode and structure" of agriculture; and the sufficient supply of the international market for agricultural products has provided conditions for the "transformation of mode and structure" of agriculture.

He pointed out that the focus of the transformation is to promote agricultural development from quantitative growth to equal emphasis on quantity, quality, and efficiency, and from relying on resources and material input to relying on scientific and technological progress and improving the quality of workers. The key point of structural adjustment is to scientifically determine the self-sufficiency level, production priority and regional layout of major agricultural products according to the changes in market demand and the characteristics of resource endowment, and on the premise of ensuring "basic self-sufficiency of grain and absolute safety of food rations." constantly optimize the planting and breeding structure, product structure, and regional structure. To this end, we need to grasp the following aspects:

More attention should be paid to increasing grain production capacity and tapping the new potential of grain production. No matter how it is changed or adjusted, the grain production capacity and arable land must not be reduced, and this is the bottom line that must be adhered to. Stabilizing grain production is the premise, and increasing grain production capacity is fundamental.

We should pay more attention to the quality and safety of agricultural products and ensure "safety on the tip of the tongue." First of all, modern agriculture is the agriculture of quality and safety. To make consumers not only have enough to eat, but also eat safely and rest assured, the agricultural sector should have this responsibility. We must adhere to both "production" and "control" with both hands and hard hands. On the one hand, vigorously promote standardized production; on the other hand, constantly strengthen supervision.

We should pay more attention to technological innovation and innovation in the mode of operation, so as to promote agricultural efficiency and increase farmers' income. Modern agriculture should be efficient agriculture. It is necessary to improve agricultural efficiency and increase farmers' income through a variety of ways. To promote agricultural scientific and technological innovation, to build a new agricultural management system, to develop appropriate scale operation, and to improve the efficiency of processing and circulation of agricultural products.

We should pay more attention to the protection of agricultural resources and environment and realize the sustainable development of agriculture. Modern agriculture must be resource-saving and environment-friendly. We must attach equal importance to "protection" and "governance" and make up our mind to take the road of sustainable development. First of all, we should not owe new debts and gradually recuperate the overdrawn agricultural resources and environment.

We should pay more attention to adapting to market demand and resource conditions, and optimize and adjust the industrial structure. Modern agriculture must be an industry that adapts to market changes and meets market demand, and must be based on resource endowment and give full play to comparative advantages. It is necessary to further optimize the regional layout of agriculture, further optimize the structure of planting and aquaculture, and further develop various functions of agriculture.

More attention should be paid to the use of two kinds of resources in the two markets to improve the competitiveness of agriculture. China's agriculture has been in an all-round open international environment and big market. To promote agriculture to "change the mode and adjust the structure", we should also have a world vision and plan the agricultural development strategy under the background of globalization. In order to promote the opening up of agriculture to the outside world, efforts should be made to build a policy system of "going out" in agriculture.

Han Changfu said: promoting agriculture to "change the mode and adjust the structure" is a long-term task, systematic engineering, and also a work with strong policy nature.We should pay attention to grasping the rhythm and methods and adhere to the correct guiding ideology and principles. The most important thing is to adhere to the dominant position of farmers and respect their wishes. Farmers are the main body of "changing the mode and adjusting the structure", and their wishes and operational autonomy must be respected. The focus of government departments is to do a good job in planning, guiding and serving, summing up and popularizing advanced experience, and creating a good market environment. It is necessary to adhere to market orientation and respect economic laws. We should make an in-depth study of demand characteristics and market trends, be good at using market information to guide agricultural production, be good at driving agricultural production through market circulation chains, and be good at using market methods to guide and organize agricultural production, so as to prevent being punished by the market and complained by farmers for blindly following the trend and engaging in a "swarm of bees". We must persist in proceeding from reality and wield comparative advantages. Comprehensively considering the resource endowment, industrial base, location advantages and market conditions of various localities, we should strengthen classified research, scientifically formulate plans, adjust measures to local conditions and guide them according to the circumstances, so as to improve the scientific nature of our work and the pertinence and effectiveness of our policies. (economic Daily reporter Zhang Xue)