Food security is a matter of national importance. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China's comprehensive grain production capacity continued to rise, with annual output surpassing the 700-million-ton mark. The grain industry has seen continuous upgrades, with the total annual industrial output value of grain enterprises exceeding 4 trillion yuan. Grain circulation has been efficient and smooth, and the market supply has remained ample with overall stable operations, making the nation's food supply more secure and higher in quality.

At a press conference held by the State Council Information Office on September 21, themed on the initial progress of the 15th Five-Year Plan, Liu Huanxin, a member of the Party Leadership Group of the National Development and Reform Commission and Director of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, stated that during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China will deepen the implementation of the national food security strategy. The focus will be on simultaneously boosting output and capacity, balancing production with ecology, and increasing both yields and farmers' incomes. Efforts will be made to enhance coordinated support across grain production, purchasing, storage, processing, and sales, strengthen grain purchase and reserve management, improve the quality and efficiency of grain circulation, promote better alignment between supply and demand, optimize structure, and elevate quality. The goal is to accelerate the establishment of a modern grain circulation system befitting the nation's major-power status.

Optimizing Purchase and Sales to Ensure Smooth and Stable Grain Market Circulation

In recent years, China's average annual grain purchase volume has exceeded 400 million tons, a level expected to remain high during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. Liu Huanxin explained that organizing large-scale purchases will adhere to the overarching principle of balancing market-oriented approaches with protecting farmers' interests, combining an effective market with a proactive government. Market-based purchases and policy-based reserves will be coordinated to ensure smooth grain sales channels, uphold the bottom line that farmers can sell their harvest, and maintain grain prices at reasonable levels.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, grain and strategic reserves departments will further invigorate grain purchasing and sales. This involves a two-pronged approach: leveraging the market's invisible hand to foster a favorable environment and guide diverse grain business entities to actively participate in the market, while also using the government's visible hand to organize policy-based procurement and provide support for supply security and price stability. Efforts will also target both ends of the supply chain. On the supply side, the focus will be on promoting contract farming for grain, strengthening post-harvest services, and improving grain quality to better align with market demand. On the demand side, the plan includes enhancing market monitoring and early warning systems and utilizing mechanisms like reserve吞吐 (absorption and release) to stabilize market expectations. Additionally, attention will be given to both software and hardware improvements, such as refining the grain trading platform system, optimizing services for farmers, strengthening production-sales linkages, and regulating market order. This also includes building out grain logistics corridors, reinforcing the functions of core hubs and key nodes, enhancing the cargo capacity of vital routes like the north-to-south grain transport, and boosting cross-regional dispatch efficiency.

Liu Huanxin also revealed that preparations for the autumn grain purchase are now complete. The administration will bolster purchase organization, strengthen inter-departmental coordination and policy support, and ensure the availability of personnel, funds, storage capacity, and transportation, guaranteeing an orderly purchase process.

Fortifying Reserves to Ensure the National Granary Stands Rock-Solid

The reserve grain is the grain that secures people's livelihoods, and it must be well-managed and utilized. Liu Huanxin stated that during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, the focus will be on managing grain reserves effectively to ensure the "national granary" remains as solid as a rock. This involves planning for ample reserves by continuously optimizing the variety mix and regional distribution of grain reserves. For optimal storage, efforts will be made to balance existing storage facilities with new investments, steadily increasing the capacity of high-standard granaries. To ensure usability, the emergency grain supply system will be improved, and the effectiveness and efficiency of grain supply security will be elevated.

Qin Yuyun, Deputy Director of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, noted that during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, departments will strengthen quality and safety management during grain procurement and storage, enhance risk monitoring, strictly enforce quality control at the points of intake, storage, and release, and refine regulations and standards to safeguard the "safety on the tip of the tongue" for the public. Currently, the nation has a standard granary capacity of 730 million tons in good condition. To raise the standard of grain and reserve management, the administration will continuously improve supporting rules and regulations, aiming to build safe, smart, green, and incorruptible granaries. This includes enhancing early warning and proactive risk prevention capabilities, promoting "AI + grain storage," and applying green storage technologies tailored to local conditions, all while strengthening risk prevention and control. Strict supervision will also be maintained over the safety of grain storage and milling operations to prevent any safety incidents.

Advancing the Industry to Improve Supply Chain Quality and Resilience

"The grain industry needs not only quantitative accumulation but also a qualitative leap forward. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, we will deepen the implementation of the high-quality grain project and continuously improve the quality and efficiency of industry development, with the goal of achieving an annual industrial output value exceeding 4.5 trillion yuan," said Liu Huanxin. The strategy involves making additions by focusing on extending the grain industry chain, guiding the coordinated development of deep processing with primary and comprehensive utilization, and particularly supporting major grain-producing counties in enhancing their processing and conversion capabilities, thereby strengthening county-level grain industry economies and boosting value-added benefits. It also involves making subtractions by promoting loss reduction across the entire post-harvest supply chain, accelerating the integration of green storage technologies, and cultivating the "invisible farmland" of grain conservation. Furthermore, the plan includes making multiplications by igniting the multiplier effect of industrial innovation, cultivating leading backbone enterprises, guiding small and medium-sized enterprises toward specialization and refinement, strengthening grain brand development, and driving the industry's transformation toward new and superior standards.

Qian Yi, another Deputy Director of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, detailed that the "four prongs" will be used to accelerate high-quality industry development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. First, optimizing structure by focusing on strengthening the grain industry chain, tailoring approaches to local conditions and specific grain types, and using leading enterprises to drive collaboration between upstream and downstream businesses. This includes encouraging the development of special dietary foods for different population groups and consistently increasing the supply of high-quality grain. Second, leading with brand development through classified cultivation, step-by-step advancement, and cluster development, refining the system of regional, corporate, and product brands while improving product and service quality. Third, driving innovation by deepening the role of technological innovation in enabling industrial development, accelerating equipment, product, and technological innovation, and building an innovation chain from research and development to industrial application. Fourth, strengthening support and guarantees by making coordinated use of various funding and policies, deepening efforts to improve the quality and efficiency of grain circulation, upgrading grain and oil processing equipment, and continuously enhancing the quality and efficiency of the grain industry's development.