Large, efficient farms encouraged by emerging rules
Source: Xinhua |
March 16, 2013, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
AT 41, farmer Li Quanguo is already a rich man by the standards of his hometown in the western province of Gansu.
In a place known for prolonged droughts and grinding poverty, Li rakes in an annual income of 200,000 yuan (US$31,880), while locals in Shandan County earn an average of 7,300 yuan.
Soon, more farmers could join him in boosting their incomes as policies are being heatedly discussed at China's ongoing parliamentary session to encourage the spread of the large-scale and specialized agriculture that has served Li so well.
The key to his success lies in scale production - improved grain varieties and advanced technologies thrive on his farm, which extends 86 hectares over the jurisdiction of two villages.
"The larger the farm, the lower the costs, and the more say we have when bargaining with our buyers. These are benefits small farms cannot enjoy," Li said.
In Shandan, Li is one of many "rural new rich" thanks to the country's relaxation of land transfer policies, which allow farmers to rent or merge their land for efficient production.
Such practices once had no legal standing, as China placed its rural land under collective ownership, giving farmers management rights over only the small patch of land contracted to them.
Fragmentation of farmland was believed to have complicated the use of large machinery and curbed agricultural output.
With fast-track urbanization in China, farmers have swarmed to cities to seek better-paying jobs, leaving land in places like Shandan largely untended.
Li sensed the opportunity when China moved to legalize land transfers in 2008. In the next five years, he expanded his 0.2-hectare farm by leasing plots from more than 700 villagers.
"In the past, when our lands were limited to a small area, villagers grew wheat on a considerable proportion of land for self-sufficiency purposes, despite the fact that wheat had poor harvests here," he said.
"But when farming turned into a big business, more land could go for profitable crops such as potatoes and onions, and big orders of seeds and fertilizer can ensure deeper discounts in price."
Li's farm employs some 60 farmers, who receive both rental fees from land transfers and decent pay for their farm labor.
Issued in January 2013, China's first policy document for the year says the government will create policies to speed up rural land transfers and grant more subsidies to large-scale landholders, family farms and rural cooperatives to encourage large-scale and specialized farming. Details are being thrashed out at the annual session of the 12th National People's Congress.
In a place known for prolonged droughts and grinding poverty, Li rakes in an annual income of 200,000 yuan (US$31,880), while locals in Shandan County earn an average of 7,300 yuan.
Soon, more farmers could join him in boosting their incomes as policies are being heatedly discussed at China's ongoing parliamentary session to encourage the spread of the large-scale and specialized agriculture that has served Li so well.
The key to his success lies in scale production - improved grain varieties and advanced technologies thrive on his farm, which extends 86 hectares over the jurisdiction of two villages.
"The larger the farm, the lower the costs, and the more say we have when bargaining with our buyers. These are benefits small farms cannot enjoy," Li said.
In Shandan, Li is one of many "rural new rich" thanks to the country's relaxation of land transfer policies, which allow farmers to rent or merge their land for efficient production.
Such practices once had no legal standing, as China placed its rural land under collective ownership, giving farmers management rights over only the small patch of land contracted to them.
Fragmentation of farmland was believed to have complicated the use of large machinery and curbed agricultural output.
With fast-track urbanization in China, farmers have swarmed to cities to seek better-paying jobs, leaving land in places like Shandan largely untended.
Li sensed the opportunity when China moved to legalize land transfers in 2008. In the next five years, he expanded his 0.2-hectare farm by leasing plots from more than 700 villagers.
"In the past, when our lands were limited to a small area, villagers grew wheat on a considerable proportion of land for self-sufficiency purposes, despite the fact that wheat had poor harvests here," he said.
"But when farming turned into a big business, more land could go for profitable crops such as potatoes and onions, and big orders of seeds and fertilizer can ensure deeper discounts in price."
Li's farm employs some 60 farmers, who receive both rental fees from land transfers and decent pay for their farm labor.
Issued in January 2013, China's first policy document for the year says the government will create policies to speed up rural land transfers and grant more subsidies to large-scale landholders, family farms and rural cooperatives to encourage large-scale and specialized farming. Details are being thrashed out at the annual session of the 12th National People's Congress.
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