China's grain output is expected to hit 480 million tons this year, Vice Minister of Agriculture Yin Chengjie has predicted.

Grain quality has been remarkably improved over the past years. High quality grain makes up 40 to 50 percent of the total supply, Yin said at a national conference on the development of agricultural industry and the rural economic situation held in Beijing at the weekend.

However, he noted that although China has successfully solved the grain issue, there exist factors that could influence grain security.

The minister called for efforts to protect arable land and reserve grain each year to ensure grain security in the next 10 to 20 years.

The two-day conference, sponsored by the Beijing-based Economic Daily, aims to build a platform for exchange of information among government departments at all levels and enterprises.

(Xinhua News Agency November 13, 2005)