China faces challenges in grain production due to severe drought in many areas

According to Xinhua News Agency, as an important commodity grain base in the country, many major grain-producing counties in Jilin Province are suffering from severe drought, with 10 major grain-producing counties, including Changling, Nong'an and Gongzhuling, with the lowest precipitation since 1951, and some plots even lost harvests.

Yang Xueyan, director of the Jilin Provincial Meteorological Observatory, said that since July 1, the average precipitation in the province has been 113.1 mm, 48% less than that of the same period in normal years, ranking second in history with less rain. Data from the Jilin provincial government show that at present, the drought-affected area of dry land in the province has reached 6.29 million mu, of which Baicheng, Songyuan, Siping and other major grain producing areas are in moderate and severe drought. It is estimated that in the next 10 days, the average precipitation in the province will be about 10 mm, which is obviously less than that of 42.4 mm in the same period of the year. The area of drought will be further expanded and the degree of drought will continue to aggravate.

Liu Zhenjun, a big grain grower in Nong'an County, said anxiously:

The corn field which is in the filling stage should be green, but due to drought and little rain, it looks more like the golden autumn in October, where all the corn leaves are withered and yellow.

Liu Shujun, a farmer in Dongbang Chai Village, Fulongquan Town, planted 10 hectares of corn this year. The drought has been serious since the beginning of summer, and corn ears have not grown in some plots because they cannot be irrigated. He said:

The drought continues to be serious, and the output will be reduced by at least half this year.

Yang Xueyan said that as the precipitation is expected to be significantly less in mid-August, the drought area will further expand, and the degree of drought will continue to increase. At present, Jilin Province is strengthening drought monitoring, forecasting and early warning, and at the same time, various localities pay close attention to drought resistance by means of using drought-resistant wells and carrying out artificial rainfall.

According to China Voice of China's CCTV News, most of Henan, a major grain province in China's Central Plains, has also ushered in a large-scale drought, and the drought area of crops in the province has exceeded 23 million mu. According to the office of Henan Flood Control and drought Relief headquarters, most of Henan will continue to have a high temperature "barbecue" this week, without widespread precipitation, and the drought in the province will further intensify.

The precipitation in Henan Province is 60% less than the average value of the same period in previous years, which is the smallest since 1951. It has entered the continuous high temperature weather in a large area of the province in July. At present, the total water storage capacity of Henan Province is 2.838 billion cubic meters, which is 1.35 billion cubic meters less than in previous years. 35% of the small reservoirs in the province are basically dry. Except Xinyang and Zhumadian, other cities have no water for agricultural irrigation, and more than 50% of the small and medium-sized rivers are cut off. Six cities, including Pingdingshan, Xuchang, Dengfeng, Zhenping, Luanchuan, and Xinmi, are short of water supply sources, and reserve sources of groundwater have been activated or water diversion measures have been taken. the groundwater level in the province has dropped by 1.8m compared with the same period last year, with 245000 people and more than 80,000 large livestock suffering from temporary draught difficulties. by the 27th, the drought area of the province was more than 23.1 million mu, with a severe drought of 6.1 million mu.

The expanding "drought map" poses challenges to agricultural production. According to agricultural experts, during the drought, most of the corn in Huang-Huai, North and Northwest China is in the trumpet stage, and the rice is in the booting stage, with rapid growth and large water demand. At present, the drought has hindered the process of crop growth in some areas.

According to the analysis of meteorological trend, in the first ten days of August, arid areas such as North China, Huang-Huai and Jianghan continued to show more high temperature and less rain, and drought was not conducive to the growth and development of autumn crops such as summer corn and cotton. As a result, the yield of autumn crops may be reduced, and the reduction in autumn crop production will also boost the demand for wheat.

Some market participants believe that based on the worries about the reduction of autumn grain production in the future, it will also stimulate the market demand for wheat in drought-stricken areas, and wheat prices are expected to rise.

According to the Wall Street news website, data from China's General Administration of Customs showed that China imported 11.34 million tons of grain and cereal flour in the first seven months of this year, an increase of 80.7 percent over the same period last year, raising food security concerns.

Since the beginning of this year, China's grain imports, especially wheat imports, have accelerated significantly, with a growth rate of more than 80% in the first half of the year, according to data provided by the Ministry of Agriculture. By comparison, China's wheat imports increased slightly by less than 5% last year.

Although imports of "foreign grain" account for less than 5% of domestic output, the rebound in the growth rate of "foreign grain" imports has still sparked a heated public debate on food security, Xinhua reported.