Adhere to safeguarding national food security as the primary task
The Central Rural Work Conference was held in Beijing from the 22nd to the 23rd. The conference reviewed the agricultural and rural work of 2014, studied major measures for advancing agricultural modernization through reform and innovation, and comprehensively deployed agricultural and rural work for next year and the period ahead.
Li Keqiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Premier of the State Council, attended the conference and delivered an important speech. Zhang Gaoli, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council, attended the conference.
Domestic prices of major agricultural products exceed import prices
The conference pointed out that since the beginning of this year, grain output has achieved an “eleventh consecutive increase” and farmers' incomes have achieved an “eleventh consecutive rapid rise,” providing support and adding confidence for doing a good job in overall work.
The conference emphasized that as domestic and international environmental conditions change and deep-seated contradictions accumulated from long-term extensive management gradually emerge, the challenges facing sustained and stable agricultural development are unprecedented. At present, domestic prices of major agricultural products exceed import prices, while production costs are constantly rising. The agricultural ecological environment has been damaged, and resources such as arable land and freshwater are tight. It is necessary, in accordance with the requirements of the 18th National Congress of the CPC, to unswervingly take the path of a new type of agricultural modernization with Chinese characteristics and accelerate the transformation of the agricultural development model.
Agricultural modernization remains a prominent “weak link”
The conference pointed out that agricultural modernization is the foundation and support of national modernization, and it remains a prominent “weak link” at present. The key difficulties in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects still lie in the countryside.
The conference emphasized that in advancing agricultural modernization, it is necessary to adhere to safeguarding national food security as the primary task and ensure basic self-sufficiency in grains and absolute security of staple food rations. It is necessary to innovate mechanisms, improve policies, and strive to do all work well.
First, vigorously develop agricultural industrialization. Move from simply finding ways on cultivated land to making full use of the entire national land and resources.
Second, actively develop moderate-scale operations in various forms. It is necessary to guide and regulate the orderly transfer of land management rights, develop various new types of agricultural operating entities, adhere to focusing on grain and agriculture, avoid “de-grainization,” and resolutely prohibit the “de-agriculturalization” of cultivated land. There are many ways to develop moderate-scale operations. It is necessary to adapt to local conditions, fully give play to the pioneering spirit of the grassroots and the masses, and allow “exploration, exploration, and more exploration.” As long as it conforms to national laws and policies, conforms to the direction of reform, and is welcomed by farmers, no matter what form it takes, it should be encouraged and supported.
Third, build resource-conserving and environment-friendly agriculture. Strengthen the construction of cultivated land quality and strictly protect cultivated land and water resources.
Fourth, increase agricultural policy and funding input. No matter how tight finances are, it is necessary to ensure that agricultural input only increases and does not decrease.
Fifth, make good use of both markets and both types of resources. Improve the system of international agricultural exchange and cooperation and innovate ways of agricultural cooperation with foreign countries.
Select, use, and manage well the leaders of the village “two committees”
The conference required giving full play to the radiating and driving role of new urbanization in agricultural modernization. Efforts should be focused on solving the existing problem of the “three 100 million people,” innovating ways for cities to lead the countryside and industry to promote agriculture, guiding modern urban production factors to flow to agriculture and rural areas, and promoting farmers' income growth through multiple channels. Actively and steadily advance the building of a new countryside, accelerate the improvement of the living environment, improve the quality of farmers, and promote the construction of a “new countryside of things” and a “new countryside of people” in parallel. Continue to declare war on poverty, promote the combination of regional development and targeted poverty alleviation, and accelerate the pace of poverty-stricken areas shaking off poverty and becoming prosperous.
The conference emphasized that in advancing agricultural modernization and new urbanization, it is necessary to adhere to a people-oriented approach, stimulate farmers' vitality for creation, innovation, and entrepreneurship, and create a vivid situation of mass entrepreneurship and innovation.
The conference pointed out that it is necessary to deeply understand the major changes taking place in the external environment and internal conditions of agriculture and rural areas under the new normal, be good at capturing opportunities amid changes and creating conditions in adversity, and constantly tap new potential, cultivate new advantages, and expand new space. In accordance with the general requirements of stabilizing grain and increasing income, improving quality and efficiency, and innovation-driven development, efforts should be made to complete the tasks of rural reform and development next year. It is necessary to actively advance structural adjustment, accelerate the transformation of the development model, and continuously improve the comprehensive efficiency and competitiveness of agriculture. Further deepen rural reform, improve top-level design, do a good job in pilot experiments, and ensure that reform makes progress and achieves results. In conjunction with the new round of elections for village “two committees,” select, use, and manage well the leaders of the village “two committees.”
Food security remains the top priority
Rural work required to adapt to the new normal
Last night, regarding some notable formulations in the Central Rural Work Conference, a Qianbao reporter conducted an exclusive interview with Xu Jianfeng, expert of the Qianjiang Evening News think tank and director of the Institute of Regional Economics of the Zhejiang Academy of Social Sciences. He said that two parts of the conference deserve particular attention. First, against the background of eleven consecutive increases, it still emphasized “taking the safeguarding of national food security as the primary task.” Second, it proposed that “it is necessary to deeply understand the major changes taking place in the external environment and internal conditions of agriculture and rural areas under the new normal, and be good at capturing opportunities amid changes and creating conditions in adversity.”
●Why is the food security issue so important
Xu Jianfeng said that many people now do not understand why, after our country has developed for so many years and its economy and society have continued to develop in all aspects, we still emphasize food security so strongly even today.
In fact, the food issue is a major issue concerning national security and stability. Only when basic self-sufficiency in food can be guaranteed can other issues even be discussed. As the saying goes, with grain in hand, there is no panic in the heart, and this holds true in any era. In addition, we must see that there are certain risks in our country's food autonomy. Our rice needs to be imported in large quantities, and our wheat has changed from being exported in the past to partially relying on imports. Although grain has maintained growth, the trend is not optimistic.
At present, our country's food security is still constrained by land factors. Although agricultural protection land remains a red line, there are many cases of various boundary-pushing requisitions of agricultural land, which poses a threat to the long-term security of food production.
●The new normal places new requirements on rural work
In addition, we can see that this rural work conference was held after the economic work conference proposed the concept of the new normal, so the conference also specifically mentioned that “it is necessary to deeply understand the major changes taking place in the external environment and internal conditions of agriculture and rural areas under the new normal.” This can be said to be a new requirement for our agricultural work. And this requirement will also bring new measures. This will also affect the urbanization process currently being advanced, because a very important part of urbanization is urban-rural integration. How to narrow the urban-rural gap in the late stage of industrialization is a problem every country needs to face in development. Some developed countries directly pay wages to farmers, but our country's financial capacity has not yet reached this level, so it is necessary to guide more modern production factors to flow to agriculture and rural areas and promote farmers' income growth. Zhejiang has been making beneficial attempts in this regard, such as the construction of e-commerce villages promoted in recent years. Our reporter Wang Xiyu
New measures such as advancing primary processing of agricultural products at the place of origin
Good news for Zhejiang
At the Central Rural Work Conference, it was also proposed to further advance the primary processing of agricultural products at the place of origin to help farmers reduce losses and increase income, and to further expand pilot projects for the registration and certification of contracted land management rights.
Last night, a Qianbao reporter connected with Huang Zuhui, dean of the China Academy for Rural Development at Zhejiang University, on this matter.
●The conference conveyed two major new measures
“Although the government's agricultural support policies are strong, overall our country's agricultural product processing industry is still relatively lagging. Primary processing cannot keep up, and deep processing is also difficult to follow.” Huang Zuhui believes that the advancement of primary processing of agricultural products at the place of origin mentioned at this conference is not only a manifestation of efforts to increase farmers' returns, but also a layout for the industrialization, scaling, and specialization of agriculture. “Primary processing is related to the added value of the agricultural products farmers produce. After primary processing, agricultural products will have an obvious qualitative improvement. Otherwise, it will not even be convenient for agricultural products to enter the circulation link.”
As for the significance of further expanding the registration and certification of contracted land management rights, Huang Zuhui said that farmers can thereby obtain corresponding rights and returns, and after mechanisms such as land transactions and transfers are established and improved in the future, it will play a broader positive role, and the rural economy will also be further activated.
“An important task in the work related to ‘agriculture, rural areas, and farmers’ is to complete registration and certification within three years.” Huang Zuhui believes that registration and certification are actually still for the purpose of clarifying the rural property rights system and are foundational work for granting farmers more property rights.
●Primary processing of agricultural products releases good news for Zhejiang
The two major issues mentioned at this conference are also very important for Zhejiang. Zhejiang has many types of agricultural products, but there is not much large-scale agricultural production, unlike the Northeast and western regions, so the primary processing industry appears even more important. Its deep processing and improvement of added value also concretely affect farmers' income growth.
“Agricultural product processing is generally understood as physical processing, such as making canned goods and so on.” Huang Zuhui believes that for Zhejiang, not only physical processing is needed, but also diversified production at the primary processing stage of agricultural products. “For example, broader preservation, grading, packaging, and transportation and marketing of specialty agricultural products have even greater industrial significance.” In addition, as an economically developed region in our country, Zhejiang has relatively full labor transfer, with a large rural labor force transferring to non-agricultural industries, so the issue of registration and certification is also more important than in less developed regions.