Technology empowers agricultural development, giving agriculture wings to soar
"I never expected such a big increase in yield! Saving fertilizer and pesticides while increasing yield, it turns out there's great potential in growing grain with science and technology." During the "three summers" season, large-scale grain growers spoke one after another of their joy at the harvest. During the "12th Five-Year Plan" period, China's modern agriculture construction accelerated, and the role of agricultural science and technology was indispensable. Improved varieties of major crops, especially grain crops, basically achieved full coverage; grain yield per mu rose to 359 kg; the comprehensive mechanization level of cultivation and harvesting for major crops exceeded 61%; and the contribution rate of agricultural science and technology progress reached 56%, becoming a decisive force in modern agricultural development. China's agricultural science and technology achievements have attracted worldwide attention. Its overall research and development level holds a leading position among developing countries and has gradually narrowed the gap with developed countries, making outstanding contributions to stabilizing growth, adjusting structure, promoting reform and benefiting people's livelihood in China's agriculture.
Fundamentally, transforming the agricultural development model relies on scientific and technological progress. Climbing to new heights and defending gains at a high level require high-yield and high-efficiency scientific and technological contributions; breaking through technological bottlenecks and promoting sustainable agricultural development require strong and lasting scientific and technological momentum. In recent years, through persistent and fruitful efforts, the wings of agricultural science and technology have become fuller and stronger, and the engine of agricultural science and technology has become more powerful and effective.
Based on industry needs, vigorously advance independent innovation in agricultural science and technology
Some people say that agricultural scientific research should both look up at the stars and keep its feet on the ground. To achieve "reaching the sky and standing on the ground" means both focusing on the long term and seizing the commanding heights of agricultural science and technology, and basing itself on the present, adhering to demand orientation, and avoiding the "two skins" separation of science and technology from the economy. It is precisely by aiming at this goal that China has achieved a large number of major scientific research results with independent intellectual property rights, laying a solid foundation for serving industrial development and enhancing international competitiveness.
Relying on the modern agricultural industrial technology system, the Ministry of Agriculture key laboratory system and major scientific research plans, China vigorously advanced independent innovation and achieved fruitful results. First, major breakthroughs were made in key technologies, supporting the stable development of agriculture. A large number of improved agricultural varieties were cultivated, and a large number of supporting production technologies were integrated. In 2015, the yields per unit area of China's three major grains - corn, rice and wheat - increased by 48 jin, 34 jin and 66 jin respectively compared with 2010. The new super rice variety "Y Liangyou 900" achieved a yield of 1026.7 kg per mu in a contiguous 100-mu field, realizing the fourth-phase super rice target ahead of schedule. Technologies such as high-efficiency wide-strip intercropping of peanut and corn and banded compound planting of corn and soybean were conquered, exploring a new path for solving the problem of coordinated development of China's grain and oil. A number of animal disease vaccines, including avian influenza and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, were developed, ensuring the safety of the livestock industry. Second, major results in basic research and high technology continued to emerge, strengthening the supply at the source of innovation. Basic research such as rice plant-type development and maize genetic biology leads international peers. Major breakthroughs were made in agricultural biotechnology represented by genetic modification, forming a number of original major results such as new transgenic insect-resistant cotton varieties, insect-resistant and herbicide-tolerant corn, and insect-resistant rice. Third, international cooperation in agricultural science and technology reached a new level, enhancing international status and influence. A total of 30,000 accessions of germplasm resources and more than 300 items of forward-looking technologies and advanced applicable technologies were introduced. Agricultural science and technology "going global" took substantive steps. Research centers such as the China-Kazakhstan Joint Laboratory of Agricultural Science were built. New varieties and technologies such as rice and avian influenza vaccines were promoted and applied in Asian and African countries and achieved good results, and the Asia-Pacific Center of the International Potato Center settled in China.
Focusing on market demand, accelerate the transformation and promotion of agricultural science and technology achievements
Implementing the newly revised Law on the Popularization of Agricultural Technology and the Law on Promoting the Transformation of Scientific and Technological Achievements, the capacity for achievement transformation, application and technology extension services has gradually strengthened. First, a pilot reform of rights and interests in seed industry scientific research achievements was carried out, enhancing innovation vitality and efficiency. Together with the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Finance, a pilot reform of rights and interests in seed industry scientific research achievements was carried out in 4 units including the Institute of Crop Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, establishing a source innovation mechanism in which projects target the market, a goal guidance mechanism in which achievements serve industry, and a resource aggregation mechanism with enterprises as the main body, which stimulated innovation vitality, accelerated achievement transformation, mobilized the enthusiasm of scientific and technological personnel for innovation, and promoted cooperation between science and enterprises and the flow of talent.
Second, an agricultural science and technology achievement transfer service center was built, accelerating achievement transformation and application. It focused on carrying out the collection and confirmation, evaluation and assessment, transfer and trading, and crowd-innovation services of agricultural science and technology achievements. In 2015, 64 transactions were completed, worth 60.91 million yuan. Third, science and technology support actions were carried out around major grain crops, enhancing the capacity to ensure grain supply. The super rice "Double Increase One Hundred" science and technology action and the Northeast corn "Double Increase Two Hundred" science and technology action were implemented. In 2015, the demonstration and promotion area of super rice was 132 million mu, with an average yield of 583.5 kg per mu, achieving the goals of increasing yield by 100 jin per mu and increasing income by 100 yuan per mu. Nearly 100 million mu of corn in Northeast China achieved the goals of increasing yield and efficiency, and in some areas achieved high yields of more than 1200 kg per mu. Fourth, reform and construction of the grassroots agricultural technology extension system were strengthened, improving the efficiency of agricultural technology extension services. The central government finance invested 2.6 billion yuan each year to support more than 2500 agricultural counties in carrying out agricultural technology extension services, driving local government finance investment of more than 10 billion yuan. The vast majority of extension institutions nationwide achieved full funding, with personnel salaries included in fiscal budgets. The central government invested 5.8 billion yuan to improve the working conditions of township agricultural technology extension institutions. More than 90% of agricultural technology extension institutions nationwide established systems such as personnel employment and work evaluation. At present, township agricultural technology extension institutions have become the main force in technology extension, while agricultural research institutes and universities, farmers' cooperatives, and agriculture-related enterprises have become important forces in agricultural technology extension. A promotion framework with one main body and multiple participants has basically taken shape.
Adhering to joint collaboration, agricultural scientific research tackling key problems presents a new pattern
In the autumn harvest season of 2014, the super rice led by Academician Yuan Longping in tackling key problems achieved a yield of more than 1000 kg per mu. Behind the glory and dream of super rice, many academicians and experts devoted their efforts, and five major rice regions and six major collaborative groups fought jointly. The successful practice of super rice once again proved that organizing joint efforts to tackle key problems is an important way to break through major key agricultural technologies and an important guarantee for improving the efficiency of agricultural science and technology innovation and achieving major breakthroughs in agricultural science and technology.
In recent years, the organization and implementation of major science and technology projects by the Ministry of Agriculture broke the boundaries of departments, regions, units and disciplines, effectively gathering superior forces from all sides and forming a powerful synergy. Using the modern agricultural industrial technology system as a carrier, it promoted in-depth cooperation among agriculture, science and education, and production, study and research. In the industrial technology fields of 50 agricultural products such as rice and hogs, a new pattern of joint collaboration among experts from different regions and different disciplines was formed. Using public welfare industry (agriculture) scientific research special projects as a platform, 224 major science and technology projects were launched and implemented, with more than 660 innovation institutions such as agricultural research institutes, science and technology enterprises, and colleges and universities in 29 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions nationwide participating, involving nearly 10,000 person-times of scientific and technological personnel, achieving cross-departmental, cross-disciplinary and cross-regional joint collaboration. Relying on Ministry of Agriculture key laboratories, 11 "vertical disciplines" with variety innovation as the main line were built, and innovation in rice, wheat, soybean, cotton and others advanced solidly; 19 "horizontal disciplines" with common technology innovation as the main line were built, and innovation in genomics, integrated pest management of crops, animal diseases and others was carried out comprehensively, forming a crisscrossing agricultural science and technology innovation network covering all agricultural production areas, advantageous agricultural product industries, major agricultural disciplines and advantageous units.