State encourages farmers to use scientific grain storage bins, reducing grain storage losses every year
Recently, experts from the Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the State Administration of Grain explained knowledge about grain production and grain saving and loss reduction to Lu Tingzhan (center), a large-scale grower at the Tingyuan Family Farm in Fugou County, Henan Province. During the 25th National Grain Love and Grain Saving Publicity Week, the Henan Provincial Grain Bureau organized more than 300 activity groups to go into villages and households and deep into the fields to carry out publicity on loving grain and saving grain and to promote knowledge and techniques for saving grain and reducing losses. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ma Yichong
In the season of deep autumn, a reporter from Economic Daily walked into the courtyard of the Beiguan Village Cooperative on Laocheng Street in Kaiyuan City, Liaoning Province. Many building materials were piled in the courtyard, and Yu Tao, chairman of the cooperative, was directing workers to build a large canopy for storing corn.
Yu Tao said that this year the cooperative planted a total of 2,300 mu of corn. Squeezed by both lower corn output and lower corn prices, corn planting returns declined somewhat. After building grain storage facilities, the cooperative can take the initiative in grain sales and avoid the period when new grain is concentrated on the market and grain prices fall. If the corn is sold after market conditions improve, better grain-growing returns can be obtained.
Strengthening scientific post-harvest grain management is an important measure for farmers to achieve a bumper harvest and good returns. The reporter learned during interviews that with the acceleration of land transfer, family farm operators, cooperatives and other new types of agricultural business entities are planting larger and larger areas and producing higher and higher grain yields. Only by storing this grain well and improving grain quality can output and income truly be increased together.
In recent years, while increasing efforts to build grain storage facilities, the state has carried out a special program for scientific grain storage by farming households and encouraged farmers to use scientific grain storage bins. By the end of 2015, nearly 10 million scientific grain storage bins will have been allocated to farming households cumulatively, which can help farmers reduce grain storage losses by more than 2.5 billion jin every year.
In order to achieve staged grain storage, the Xiangfa Agricultural Machinery Service Professional Cooperative in Liangdun Village, Sanhe Town, Hongze County, Jiangsu Province, purchased 6 dryers. While drying and storing the cooperative's grain, they also provide grain drying services for nearby farmers. Chairman Liang Jiaxiang has deep feelings about the benefits brought by grain drying facilities: “Building grain drying and storage facilities can not only reduce grain losses and waste, but also improve grain quality. In 2014, we changed our previous practice and dried and stored grain in a timely manner, thereby increasing income by more than 3 million yuan.”
A relevant person in charge of the State Administration of Grain said that implementing scientific grain storage by farming households can ease the fiscal burden. In recent years, in the main producing areas of corn and wheat, due to climate and poor grain storage conditions among farming households, large amounts of grain became moldy. To dispose of this non-compliant grain through targeted measures, the state increased its fiscal burden. Implementing scientific grain storage by farming households and reducing moldy grain correspondingly reduces fiscal subsidy expenditures. Now the state has made it clear that it will increase support for new types of agricultural business entities. By vigorously promoting scientific grain storage bins and grain drying technology, their growing grain storage needs can be met.