Abstract
Based on the data from the Cost-benefit Data of Farm Produce and the China Agricultural Yearbook, this paper aims to examine the spatial and temporal change characteristics of total grain production and its affecting factors. The results show that: 1) During 1980 to 2007, total grain production increased from 3.20 × 108 t to 5.02 × 108 t in China, with annual increasing rate of 1.68%. From the regional disparities, most of the regions present increasing trend of total grain production except for several regions with higher level of economic development; 2) Grain sown area decreased from 1.17 × 108 ha in 1980 to 1.06 × 108 ha in 2007, which has negative effect on total grain production; 3) The increase of grain yield per unit area caused by land use intensity changes contributed to the increase of total grain yield greatly. However, as the land use intensity showed that farmers pay more attention to labor-saving input but not yield-increasing input, the less enthusiasm of farmers in grain production may become an important constraint on future grain production increase in China; 4) Based on the results, this paper proposed different land management policies in different regions, for example, the government should protect cultivated land, promote large scale production. As to the less developed regions, the government should pay more attention to agricultural subsidies to promote farmers’ enthusiasm in grain production.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Brookfield H C, 1972. Intensification and disintensification in Pacific agriculture. Pacific Viewpoint, 13(1): 30–48.
Chen Y Q, Li X B, Tian Y J et al, 2009. Structural change of agricultural land use intensity and its regional disparity in China. Journal of Geographical Sciences, (19): 545–556. doi: 10.1007/s11442-009-0545-7
Deng X Z, Huang J K, Rozelle S et al., 2006. Cultivated land conversion and potential agricultural productivity in China. Land use policy, 23: 372–384. doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2005.07.003
Department of Rural Surveys, 1981–2008. China Agricultural Yearbook (1980–2007). Beijing: China Statistics Press. (in Chinese)
Feng Z M, Yang Y Z, Zhang Y Q et al., 2005. Grain-for-green policy and its impacts on grain supply in West China. Land Use Policy, 22(4): 301–312. doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2004.05.004
Ko J, Hall C A S, Lemus L G, 1998. Resource use rates and efficiency as indicators of regional sustainability: An examination of five countries. Environment Monitoring Assessment, 51(1–2): 571–593. doi: 10.1023/A:1006095822024
Liu J Y, Liu M L, Zhuang D F et al., 2003. Study on spatial pattern of land-use change in China during 1995–2000. Science in China (Series D), 46(4): 273–384. doi: 10.1360/03yd9033
Liu Y S, Zhai R X, 2009. Spatial-temporal pattern changes and optimal strategy of grain production in China since 1990s. Areal Research and Development, 28(1): 1–5, 16. doi: 1003-2363(2009)01-0001-05
National Bureau of Statistics of China, 1981–2008. China Statistical Yearbook (1980–2007). Beijing: China Statistics Press. (in Chinese)
Ramankutty N, Foley J A, Olejniczak N J, 2002. People on the land: Changes in global population and croplands during the 20th Century. AMBIO, 31(3): 251–257. doi: 10.1579/0044-7447-31.3.251
Shriar A J, 2002. Food security and land use deforestation in northern Guatemala. Food Policy, 27(4): 395–414. doi: 10.1016/S0306-9192(02)00046-5
Tian W M, Wan G H, 2000. Technical efficiency and its determinants in China’s grain production. Journal of productivity analysis, 13(2): 159–174. doi: 10.1023/A:1007805015716
Tong Chengli, Hall C A S, Wang H Q, 2003. Land use change in rice, wheat and maize production in China (1961–1998). Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 95(2–3): 523–536. doi: 10.1016/S0167-8809(02)00182-2
Tranter R B, Swinbank A, Wooldridge M J et al., 2007. Implications for food production, land use and rural development of the European Union’s single farm payment: Indications from a survey of farmers’ intentions in Germany, Portugal and the UK. Food Policy, 32(5–6): 656–671. doi: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2007.04.001
Verburg P H, Chen Y Q, Veldkamp T, 2000. Spatial explorations of land use change and grain production in China. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Envrionment, 82(1–3): 333–354. doi: 10.1016/S0167-8809(00)00236-X
Yan H M, Liu J Y, Huang H Q et al., 2009. Assessing the consequence of land use change on agricultural productivity in China. Global and Planetary Change, 67(1–2): 13–19. doi: 10.1016/j.gloplacha.2008.12.012
Yang H, Li X B, 2000. Cultivated land and food supply in China. Land Use Policy, 17(2): 73–88. doi: 10.1016/S0264-8377(00)00008-9
Yin Peihong, Fang Xiuqi, Ma Yuling et al, 2006. New regional pattern of grain supply-demand in China in the early 21st Century. Jouranl of Natural Resources, 21(4): 625–631. (in Chinese)
Zhang J K, Zhang F R, Zhang D et al., 2008. The grain potential of cultivated lands in mainland China in 2004. Land use policy, 26(1): 68–76. doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2008.01.002
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Foundation item: Under the auspices of National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 40971062), China Postdoctoral Science Fundation (No. 20100480441)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Chen, Y., Li, X. & Wang, J. Changes and effecting factors of grain production in China. Chin. Geogr. Sci. 21, 676–684 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-011-0506-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-011-0506-9