As the autumn breeze arrives, the fragrance of grains fills the air. The ninth Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival has arrived as scheduled. Across the vast expanse of the nation, a magnificent tableau of harvest slowly unfolds: golden rice waves surge like tides, corn stands tall like towers, and soybean pods are plump and full, painting the defining hues of this autumn season.

In Heilongjiang, the country's leading grain-producing province, autumn harvest operations are now in full swing, with early-maturing rice beginning to be reaped. On September 23, the 2026 Chinese Farmers' Harvest Festival's main event in the province kicked off vibrantly at the Yanjiagang Farm of Beidahuang Group in Harbin. Amid the rice paddies, unmanned harvesters and large-scale intelligent harvesters worked side by side, showcasing the formidable strength of modern agriculture. The aroma of the "giant rice pot feast" wafted through the air as livestream hosts tasted the dishes on-site and drove sales through live commerce, delivering the flavor of the harvest to countless households and converting the sweat shed in the fields into tangible income.

Behind the lively harvest scenes lies the weighty issue of food security. No matter how far the process of social modernization advances, the challenge of feeding over 1.4 billion people remains the foremost priority for national governance. This responsibility translates into firm actions to stabilize grain output and increase production across regions, while also rallying the immense strength of hundreds of millions of farmers tilling the land.

The foundations of the nation's major grain granary are growing ever more solid. This year, the national summer grain output reached another record high, laying a solid cornerstone for a bumper annual grain harvest. One out of every nine bowls of rice consumed in the country is produced in Heilongjiang Province. Serving as the "ballast stone" for national food security, Heilongjiang is focusing on boosting yields per unit area, continuously consolidating its comprehensive grain production capacity, and striving to build a more stable and reliable "mega granary."

Looking toward the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, Heilongjiang Province has set a clear target: to strive for a comprehensive grain production capacity of 200 billion jin by 2030, continuously contributing "Heilongjiang strength" to national food security. The goal is written into the plans, and hope grows on the black soil. As the autumn wind sweeps through Zhenxing Village in Minle Korean Township of Wuchang City, ten thousand mu of paddy fields ripple with waves of gold. Here, the Lalin River and Mangniu River converge, and natural flowing water nourishes the fertile cold-region black soil, giving rise to high-quality rice with a rich aroma. Amid the ridges, Yu Dianhong, chairman of the Hongyang Organic Planting Farmers' Professional Cooperative, bent down to inspect the rice ears. Gazing at the plump, robust grains with sturdy stalks, he could hardly contain his joy. The cooperative's brand-new processing line is already in operation, and the new rice will be harvested, processed, and brought to market in just over ten days, allowing consumers to savor the freshness of the new cold-region grain as early as possible.

The confidence in the harvest is firmly supported by the powerful thrust of agricultural technology. Heilongjiang Province is continuously strengthening the technological support for food security, integrating and deploying advanced techniques and models to make farming easier and more efficient for growers. This year, the province applied wide-ridge dense planting and integrated water-fertilizer technology across more than 75.6 million mu of land. On a plot in Dorbod Mongol Autonomous County, grower Tong Junji held up two corn ears for comparison—the ear from the plot using integrated water-fertilizer technology was noticeably larger, with fuller kernels, clearly demonstrating the yield-boosting effect. Relying on this technology, local corn yields have broken through 2,000 jin per mu at the highest. The empowerment of technology runs through the entire agricultural production chain, extending well beyond field management. Inside the workshop of Heilongjiang Dewo Technology Development Co., Ltd., engineers are fine-tuning a new generation of electric-driven pneumatic precision seeders, crafting the "sharp tools" for next spring's sowing season. In Shuangcheng District of Harbin, corn grower Jia Wencheng pulled out an ear of corn and remarked with emotion: "Thanks to Dewo's seeding equipment, we achieved uniform emergence, spacing, and strength—and that's what made this harvest possible." From factory floors to vast farmlands, agricultural technology continues to reshape grain production models, giving vivid meaning to the phrase "with capable machinery, farming becomes effortless."

Food security ensures agricultural stability, and agricultural stability secures the overall strategic initiative. The "15th Five-Year Plan" outline has set the target of achieving a comprehensive grain production capacity of around 1.45 trillion jin. Handling every aspect of autumn harvest work meticulously bears directly on a strong start to the "15th Five-Year Plan" period and has a bearing on the broader economic development picture for the year. Across the nation's vast farmlands, hundreds of millions of farmers and agricultural workers are watering hope with their sweat. Everyone understands that only by continuously enhancing comprehensive agricultural production capacity and shoring up the foundations of food security on all fronts can the country face various risks and challenges with greater composure and confidence. The bountiful harvest across the motherland is not merely a gift of the season—it is the resounding echo of the national food security strategy taking root and bearing fruit. On this festival dedicated to farmers, let us pay tribute to their hard work and celebrate the abundance of the harvest.