How to implement the agricultural-style industrialization strategy? Detailed policy recommendations
Transforming the agricultural development model and achieving sustainable food production were the priorities of China's agriculture and rural work in 2015. Fundamentally speaking, the key issue in promoting the transformation of China's agricultural development model is how to, on the premise of ensuring sustainable food production and sustainable agricultural development, promote farmers' income growth and advance coordinated urban-rural development and the coordinated development of agricultural modernization, industrialization, informatization and urbanization, the "four modernizations." The fundamental way to resolve this difficulty is to implement the agricultural-style industrialization strategy, and this strategy is a new pathway and new highlight for promoting the transformation of China's agricultural development model and economic development, and an important way to coordinate food security, economic development and farmers' income growth.
The connotation of agricultural-style industrialization
The so-called agricultural-style industrialization takes agricultural development, food security and farmers' prosperity as its focus and orientation, takes green, circular and sustainable development as its keynote, takes the deep processing of agricultural products and their by-products as its core, and includes a series of contents such as the production of agricultural means of production, the technology, processes, machinery, equipment and facilities for agricultural production and the deep processing of agricultural products and their by-products, as well as various forms of production, operation and service organization and their related mechanisms, institutions and systems. Through the modernization of the production of agricultural means of production, agricultural production and the deep processing of agricultural products and their by-products, it drives the development of related industries and technologies, thereby promoting the enhancement of comprehensive economic strength and technological level. This is a model of industrialization.
⟦NL> Agricultural-style industrialization derives from the concepts of agricultural industrialization, agricultural industrialization, agricultural modernization, and "developing industry around agriculture and promoting agriculture through industry" and "developing agriculture with industrial concepts," yet it is higher than them. In other words, the above concepts and formulations are only one aspect of agricultural-style industrialization, and they are all contained within agricultural-style industrialization. From the perspective of concept, agricultural-style industrialization is an industrialization concept under the strategic thinking of "grand industrialization," incorporating agriculture into the scope of industrialization, whereas the other concepts are only about agriculture itself, belonging to industrial management methods or industrialization and modernization transformation of agriculture, and still follow the conventional thinking mode that distinguishes agriculture from industry. From the perspective of purpose, agricultural-style industrialization is based on agriculture, but it not only focuses on agriculture itself, but also focuses on driving the development of related industries and technologies through the modernization of the production of agricultural means of production, agricultural production and the deep processing of agricultural products and their by-products, thereby promoting the enhancement of the overall economic and technological level. In addition, from the perspective of accuracy, the concept of agricultural industrialization is not accurate enough in the strict sense; agriculture itself is an industry, and industrializing an industry is merely a repetition of the same meaning. As for agricultural industrialization, even if richer connotations can be given to it, this formulation is also easily misunderstood literally as merely the industrialization transformation of agricultural production. Agricultural-style industrialization, by contrast, is relatively clearer and more explicit in definition; it is an industrialization strategy and economic development model centered on agriculture in the traditional sense, and is proposed in contrast to China's previous catch-up heavy industrialization or non-agricultural industrialization.
The background of the proposal of agricultural-style industrialization
To solve the issues concerning agriculture, rural areas and farmers and promote agricultural development, the fundamental way out lies in industrialization. However, what kind of industrialization model or path to choose is crucial. We believe that the following four factors should mainly be considered: first, whether it can reflect comparative advantages; second, whether it can obtain considerable economic benefits; third, whether it has a realistic foundation for implementation; fourth, whether the concept is accurate, comprehensive and clear.
First, examine from the perspective of comparative advantage. From the perspective of the national industrial division of labor system, the prominent feature and advantage of major agricultural provinces is agricultural resources. However, most of China's major agricultural provinces are "large but not strong, positioned but not superior," and the advantages of agricultural resources have not been fully brought into play. Being able to explore such a new "autonomous" industrialization path can avoid industrial homogenization and form the unique economic characteristics of major agricultural provinces, which has more prospects and hope than "taking on transferred obsolete industries from outside."
Second, examine from the perspective of economic benefits. There are many links in the agricultural industry chain, and food production is only one of them; from breeding, irrigation and fertilizer production to machinery and equipment manufacturing and deep processing of agricultural products, there is no lack of high-tech fields in each link, and high returns can also be obtained, and it can even lead the country and the world. The key lies in how to utilize the advantages of agricultural resources, and what path or model to choose to develop agriculture in the traditional sense and related industries, so as to ensure profitability.
Third, examine from the perspective of realistic foundation. Overall, China already possesses various realistic conditions for implementing the agricultural-style industrialization strategy. It not only has the internal motivation to develop agricultural-style industry and the agricultural resource foundation for implementing the agricultural-style industrialization strategy, but also has the industrial foundation for implementing the agricultural-style industrialization strategy. At present, China has already established a complete industrial system in the traditional sense, laying a solid technical and equipment support for agricultural-style industrialization.
In addition, examine from the perspective of the concept itself. Compared with concepts and formulations such as agricultural industrialization, agricultural industrialization and agricultural modernization, agricultural-style industrialization is more accurate, comprehensive and clearer.
In summary, agricultural-style industrialization relatively conforms to the above four basic elements and is an accurate, clear and comprehensive concept.
Policy recommendations for implementing the agricultural-style industrialization strategy
Implementing agricultural-style industrialization helps break through the traditional misunderstanding of agriculture, helps better safeguard national food security, helps improve the comprehensive competitiveness of agriculture, helps advance the coordinated development of the four modernizations, and conforms to the current trend of reform and development and the need to seek new economic growth points. In order to better advance the agricultural-style industrialization strategy and promote the transformation of the agricultural development model and economic development, the following policy recommendations are hereby put forward in light of the connotation of agricultural-style industrialization and China's actual conditions:
(1) Establish comprehensive demonstration pilot zones for agricultural-style industrialization. It is recommended that the central government establish comprehensive demonstration pilot zones for agricultural-style industrialization (hereinafter referred to as comprehensive demonstration pilot zones) in major agricultural provinces with mature conditions, to pilot first and explore and accumulate experience. The comprehensive demonstration pilot zones are positioned as "eight major functional zones," namely: comprehensive pilot zones for modern agricultural-style industry; pioneering zones for coordinated reform to promote the coordinated development of agricultural modernization, new industrialization, informatization and urbanization, the "four modernizations"; nationally important demonstration zones for the development of circular economy in agricultural-style industry; nationally important and even internationally influential bases for modern agricultural breeding, bases for research, development and extension of modern agricultural production and equipment technology, and cluster zones for modern agricultural science and technology enterprises; bases with relatively strong competitiveness for the production of agricultural means of production and research, development and extension of equipment technology, and cluster zones for modern agricultural means of production and equipment science and technology enterprises; bases with relatively high visibility for deep processing of agricultural products and research, development and extension of equipment technology, and cluster zones for modern deep processing of agricultural products and equipment science and technology enterprises; first-class domestic and even internationally leading trading zones for agricultural products and agricultural-style industrial equipment, and cluster zones for agricultural-style industrial science and technology talent; and internationally important zones for international cooperation in modern agricultural production and processing technology.
(2) Establish an agricultural-style industrial technology and equipment industry. Merge the related technology and equipment industries involved in each stage of agricultural production into a unified agricultural-style industrial technology and equipment industry, and promote it as a priority. Merge the machinery and equipment related to agricultural production links such as sowing, irrigation, harvesting and agricultural product testing, and the machinery and equipment for producing agricultural means of production such as seeds, livestock breeds, poultry breeds, chemical fertilizers and pesticides (except gasoline, diesel and machine oil) into a unified agricultural production technology and equipment industry; merge the processing machinery for grain and oil, meat, aquatic products and agricultural by-products, as well as other agricultural product processing machinery, into a unified agricultural product deep processing technology and equipment industry.
(3) Carry out coordinated reform of agricultural science and technology innovation application and innovation of agricultural production organization methods. Like traditional industry, agricultural science and technology innovation also faces the problem of organically combining industry, academia and research. At present, major agricultural provinces across the country generally face a contradiction between the promotion and application of agricultural science and technology and the current situation of agricultural production organization methods such as dispersed land management and weak agricultural cooperative organizations, which is not conducive to the innovation and development of China's agricultural science and technology. It is recommended to conduct pilot projects in the comprehensive demonstration pilot zones, actively explore coordinated reform of agricultural science and technology innovation application and innovation of agricultural production organization methods, and solve the difficult problem of modernizing agricultural production.
(4) Strengthen scientific and technological support for agricultural production. Increase the number of agriculture-related national engineering laboratories, national key laboratories, national engineering technology research centers and science and technology resource sharing platforms in the pilot zones; support the construction of an "international agricultural gene technology research and development center" integrating scientific research, education and leisure; and support the construction of a "national modern crop seed industry and livestock breeding center" in the comprehensive demonstration pilot zones in terms of policy support, capital investment, planning layout, institutional innovation and information services.
(5) Accelerate the training and attraction of high-level agricultural-style science and technology talent. Support the establishment of a China international agricultural-style science and technology talent market; appropriately tilt the portion of funds in national major talent projects used for the agricultural field toward the comprehensive demonstration pilot zones; strengthen international agricultural science and technology cooperation, study and exchange; and provide support in terms of institutional setup and staffing in the comprehensive demonstration pilot zones.
(6) Build a service system for agricultural-style industrialization. The service system for agricultural-style industrialization refers to the general term for various necessary forms of production, operation and service organization and their related mechanisms, institutions and systems that provide for agricultural-style industrialization. Specifically, it includes developing diverse forms of agricultural production and operation organization, building a complete agricultural socialized service system, advancing strategic alliances for agricultural-style industrial technological innovation, developing producer services for agricultural-style industry, building an agricultural-style industrial financial service system, building a relatively complete marketing and circulation network for agricultural products, deep-processed products and other agricultural-style industrial products, cultivating brands of agricultural-style industrial enterprises, and exploring various forms of strategic alliances of agricultural-style industrial enterprises and other new organizational forms.