2014 Agricultural Machinery Purchase Subsidy Policy Achievements Recognized by the Ministry of Finance

In 2014, driven by the agricultural machinery purchase subsidy policy, the level of agricultural machinery equipment and agricultural machinery operations improved rapidly, new agricultural mechanization technologies were accelerated in their promotion and application, and farmers' enthusiasm for purchasing and using machinery ran high, providing strong equipment and technical support for achieving the "eleventh consecutive increase" in grain production and the "eleventh consecutive rapid increase" in farmers' incomes. The agricultural machinery purchase subsidy policy achieved remarkable results.

First, it promoted the continuous growth of the total amount of agricultural machinery and further optimized the structure and layout of agricultural machinery equipment. The agricultural machinery purchase subsidy policy continued to mobilize farmers' enthusiasm for purchasing machinery, and the total amount of agricultural machinery nationwide continued to grow steadily and relatively rapidly. In 2014, the agricultural machinery purchase subsidy policy had been implemented for 11 consecutive years. Subsidy funds increased from 70 million yuan in 2004 to 23.65 billion yuan in 2014, with cumulative investment of about 120 billion yuan, subsidizing the purchase of more than 35 million units (sets) of various types of agricultural machinery; in 2014, the national total agricultural machinery power was expected to reach 1.05 billion kilowatts, an increase of 410 million kilowatts over 2004, or 64%; the equipment structure accelerated its development toward high horsepower, multi-function and high performance, with the inventories of large and medium-sized tractors, combine harvesters and rice transplanters exceeding 5.58 million, 1.52 million and 660,000 units respectively, which were 5 times, 3.7 times and 9.8 times those of 2004. The inventories of machinery for cash crops, livestock and aquaculture, forestry and fruit industries, and primary processing of agricultural products grew rapidly.

Second, it promoted the promotion and use of agricultural machinery and further raised the level of agricultural mechanization operations. The agricultural machinery purchase subsidy continued to stimulate farmers' enthusiasm for using machinery, the area of agricultural machinery operations continued to increase, and the level of agricultural mechanization during important farming seasons and in weak links improved significantly. In 2014, the comprehensive mechanization level of crop cultivation, planting and harvesting nationwide exceeded 61%, 27 percentage points higher than in 2004. The comprehensive mechanization rates of cultivation, planting and harvesting for the three major grain crops all exceeded 75%, and wheat production basically achieved full-process mechanization. The levels of mechanized rice planting and harvesting rose from 6% and 27% in 2004 to 38% and 81% at present, and the level of mechanized corn harvesting rose from 2% to 55%. With agricultural machinery as the carrier, yield-increasing and efficiency-enhancing technologies such as precision sowing, deep fertilizer application, efficient plant protection, low-loss harvesting and straw return were rapidly promoted, and the areas of conservation tillage and deep loosening and land preparation exceeded 120 million mu and 150 million mu respectively, further tapping the potential for increased grain production and enhancing agriculture's disaster resistance.

Third, agricultural machinery socialized services flourished, further promoting the transformation of agricultural production methods. At present, the number of various service organizations nationwide, such as specialized agricultural machinery operation households and agricultural machinery cooperatives, exceeded 5.3 million and 1.7 million respectively, and a large number of agricultural machinery experts who understand technology, can operate machinery and are good at management emerged, completing nearly 4 billion mu of operation service area each year, accounting for about two-thirds of the total agricultural machinery operation area nationwide, with income from agricultural machinery field operation services exceeding 210 billion yuan. In 2014, the newly added promotion area of new agricultural mechanization technologies such as precision sowing, conservation tillage and efficient plant protection was 120 million mu. At the same time, a cumulative area of 150 million mu of deep loosening and land preparation operations was completed, exceeding the target task of 100 million mu. Agricultural machinery socialized services have become a prominent highlight of agricultural socialized services, alleviating the adverse effects on agricultural production caused by young and middle-aged laborers going out to work, promoting land transfer and scale management, and improving the level of agricultural intensification and the degree of organization.

Fourth, it stimulated effective rural demand and further promoted the steady development of the agricultural machinery industry. Driven by the agricultural machinery purchase subsidy policy and other aspects, China's agricultural machinery production and sales flourished, driving the rapid development of the agricultural machinery industry. The total output value of the agricultural machinery industry maintained double-digit growth for ten consecutive years. In 2014, the main business income of agricultural machinery enterprises above designated size nationwide reached 418.06 billion yuan, an increase of 8.8% year on year. At present, China's agricultural machinery industry clusters have taken initial shape, the scientific and technological content, product quality and after-sales service level have continuously improved, and major agricultural machinery products can already meet more than 90% of domestic market demand.