BEIJING: China has vowed to increase the output of high-quality products by deepening supply-side structural reforms in agriculture, a move that is expected to help farmers explore opportunities created by the emerging middle class. At a press conference held in Beijing on Monday, Tang Renjian, deputy director of the central rural work leading group, said that there are pressures on the supply side and called for a more competitive and efficient agricultural development based on innovative and green production. Targeted measures will be adopted, including vigorously controlling water usage, limiting the usage of pesticides and fertilizers and establishing innovation centers for better farm produce, according to a policy document released late on Sunday by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the State Council.
This is the Chinese authorities’ first policy document of 2017, marking the 14th consecutive year that the “No.1 central document” has focused on rural and agricultural reforms. During the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), rural and agricultural investment is estimated to reach 3.4 trillion yuan ($496 billion), more than three times the amount from the previous five-year plan period, according to Tang, who also called for private capital to enter the field.
