The problem of food is not a simple problem of addition and subtraction.

On December 8th, the National Bureau of Statistics announced that this year's grain output is 616.239 million tons, although it is 5.201 million tons less than 2015, but it is still a bumper harvest year. At the same time, there is another voice in society, which basically continues the query of a few years ago, saying, "Why is there a bumper harvest again, and the old bumper harvest is not a good thing", "it costs both money and land" and so on.

It can be summed up for three reasons. One is that grain production is piled up with money. In recent years, the funds for the "four subsidies" have been increasing, coupled with the implementation of the minimum purchase price policy for rice and wheat, and the temporary purchase and storage price of corn, which has led to an increase in financial burden along with the increase in output. The second is that there is too much grain and there is no place to store it. On the one hand, the old grain has not been disposed of, on the other hand, the new grain has been harvested, but the storage capacity has not increased much. In times of peace, there is no need for the country to save so much food. Third, it is believed that foreign grain is of good quality and cheap, and its own production is not as good as import. Importing grain is equivalent to importing land and water.

So, what's the truth? First, is there really a lot of agricultural subsidies? Compared with developed countries, there is still a large gap in agricultural subsidies in China. According to the data, the average level of agricultural subsidies in OECD countries is 21.7 per cent, 52.1 per cent in South Korea, 47.3 per cent in Japan and 25.33 per cent in the European Union, much higher than China's 9.1 per cent, while 40 per cent of American farmers' income comes from agricultural subsidies. Second, on the issue of warehousing. Objectively speaking, with the bumper harvest of grain in successive years, China's storage capacity does not adapt, and there is a large gap in storage capacity. On the one hand, there are reasons for the reserve system, and on the other hand, it is because farmers' households used to have large vats of grain, but now most of them are no longer stored, coupled with factors such as upside-down prices, leading to an increase in inventory. However, we should not negate the strategy because of technical problems, nor should we negate the long-term because of temporary problems, still less should we deny the significance of a bumper grain harvest because of insufficient storage capacity. Third, does the problem of eating depend on the reality of others? History has proved time and again that holding the rice bowl in the hands of others is not only unstable, but also pretending to be dissatisfied. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out many times, "We must bear in mind history, do not get amnesia on the issue of eating, and do not forget the pain after healing the scar." Moreover, the room for adjustment in the international market is limited, so it is neither enough for us to eat nor can it all be sold to us.

The problem of food is not a simple matter of addition or subtraction. First, "the order of the people is to eat rice with five grains." Food is first of all public goods, and it is the most basic element of production, life and survival of human society. The nature of grain determines that it is not an ordinary commodity and cannot be done in full accordance with the laws of the market. Second, the food issue is not only an economic issue, but also a political issue, and it is a "Poseidon needle" for national development. The price of grain is the basis of all prices, which is related to price stability. Especially in the context of the increasing downward pressure on China's economy in the past two years, the role of "ballast stone" is more obvious. Third, the food problem cannot withstand troubles. History has repeatedly shown that it is easy for grain production to fall, but difficult to recover. Once there is a big problem, it will be passive for years. For example, in the mid-1990s, China had a bumper harvest year after year and relaxed grain production, resulting in a substantial reduction in production from 1998 to 2003, and it took five years to return to the level of ten years ago. Nowadays, with the increase of the total population, the proportion of urban population and the level of consumption, the demand for food can only increase but not decrease, so it is more necessary to correctly understand the basic status of grain.

"from agriculture to Tao". The problem of food is not a simple problem of more or less, nor is it simply the problem of agriculture itself, nor is it the problem of the peasants themselves. Precisely when the agricultural situation is good, we should not be careless and relax grain production. Of course, how to do better and better still requires the great wisdom of the government and relevant departments.

It is particularly gratifying that this wisdom has been clearly reflected in this year's grain production. Judging from the interpretation of the 2016 grain production situation by the National Bureau of Statistics, this year's bumper grain harvest is achieved on the basis of local governments' initiative to optimize the agricultural production structure and regional distribution. Under the background of agricultural supply-side structural reform, the planting area of corn in non-dominant areas should be appropriately reduced, and measures such as "changing jade into beans" and "changing grain to feed" should be taken to make grain production more in line with the market demand. At the same time, in the face of the hard constraints of resource conditions and ecological environment, various localities adhere to the concept of green development in grain production, implement the "zero growth" action of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, promote the resource utilization of wastes such as straw, and realize the transformation and upgrading of the mode of production. It can be said that this year's bumper harvest is not only a bumper harvest of quantity, but also a bumper harvest of quality, efficiency and green harvest, which is of multiple significance.