The country could become a global power in agricultural sciences
by 2020 despite challenges such as climate change and resource
shortages, Vice-Premier Hui Liangyu said this weekend.
He also said China could become a science power by 2050.
"Only state-of-art scientific and technological progress will
allow China to feed its growing population and ensure long-lasting
grain security," Hui told the agricultural scientists attending the
50th anniversary celebration of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural
Sciences over the weekend.
With about 10,000 scientists and researchers, the academy is a
powerhouse in agriculture that has played a vital role in raising
the country's grain output to an estimated 500 million tons this
year, from 400 million tons in 1984 and 300 million tons in
1978.
Scientists have cultivated 15,000 new crops in the past 50
years.
Hybrid rice was one of the biggest successes. The hybrid rice
first developed in the early 1970s boosted the country's rice
output by 400 million tons over the next 25 years. That is equal to
the entire food output in a single average year in the 80s.
"However, we are still going uphill when it comes to developing
agriculture," Hui said. "Maintaining a sound and rapid pace is
still a demanding task."
Zhai Huqu, the academy's president, said the agriculture
industry faces challenges from environmental pollution, disastrous
weather and shortages of water, finances and labor in some regions.
Arable land loss, the impact of climate change on agriculture,
preventing plant and animal diseases and food safety are also high
on the government's concern list.
Zhai, a rice expert, said these challenges should spur research
and scientific breakthroughs that will guarantee the country's
grain security and food safety, even after the population reaches
1.6 billion in 2030.
Zhai attributed his confidence to the efforts of the many local
and foreign scientists and researchers working in the field.
He said he has been recruiting talent ever since he became
president of the agricultural academy in 2001. As a result of his
efforts, more than 40 world-class scientists are working on rice,
wheat, cotton, animal disease prevention and other sectors.
Meanwhile, many international research institutes have expressed
interest in moving their headquarters to China.
"Combining all the research forces together, China could become
a power of agricultural sciences sooner than expected," said
Zhai.
(China Daily November 12, 2007)
