China's grain market remains broadly stable with dependable food security safeguards. Recently, several international institutions have projected continued increases in global food prices, driven by the El Ni帽o weather pattern and geopolitical conflicts. Data shows that in August, international futures prices for wheat, corn, and soybeans all experienced varying degrees of increase.

On September 21, at the State Council Information Office's press conference for the "15th Five-Year Plan" series, Liu Huanxin, head of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, responded to these concerns, noting that the World Meteorological Organization has forecast the El Ni帽o phenomenon will continue to intensify, potentially impacting global agricultural production. At the same time, geopolitical conflicts have disrupted transportation routes and driven up fertilizer prices, resulting in higher grain production costs and increasing uncertainty surrounding global food security. He stressed that these conditions require close attention, careful observation, scientific assessment, and proactive responses.

While the international grain market has indeed shown varying levels of volatility, China's grain market remains broadly stable, and the country's food security is backed by reliable guarantees. From a production perspective, China's comprehensive grain production capacity has been steadily improving in recent years, thanks to the implementation of various agricultural support and benefit policies. Given the country's vast territory, different regions can complement each other's harvests, providing strong stability in grain production. Since 2015, China's annual grain output has remained stable at over 650 million tons, surpassing 700 million tons for the first time in 2024, and reaching 715 million tons in 2025. Per capita grain availability exceeds 500 kilograms, higher than the world average, providing a solid material foundation for national food security.

In terms of reserves, China has developed a comprehensive grain reserve system over the years, encompassing both government and enterprise reserves, with government reserves further divided into central and local levels. During the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, reserve scale and structure have been continuously optimized, layout has become more rational, and support capacity has steadily improved. The ratio of total grain inventory to consumption across society remains far above the 17%-18% international food security warning threshold. "If abnormal market fluctuations occur, reserves can be deployed to regulate grain supply and demand and stabilize the grain market," Liu stated. From a processing perspective, China's grain industry shows robust development momentum, characterized by sufficient processing capacity, broad coverage, and strong support capabilities. Currently, the country has 24,000 grain processing enterprises across various categories, including finished grain and oil processing, food and condiment production, feed processing, and deep processing. The annual industrial output value of grain enterprises exceeds 4 trillion yuan, with over one-third of provinces each achieving more than 100 billion yuan in annual output value. Processing capacity for finished grain and oil products such as flour, rice, and cooking oil is fully adequate to meet nationwide consumer demand.

Liu emphasized that safeguarding national food security is an enduring mission that requires both confidence and vigilance. While maintaining stability, the country must also prepare for potential risks, closely monitor changing circumstances, respond proactively, address weaknesses, and comprehensively strengthen foundations to continuously enhance national food security capabilities. Global warming has led to frequent and widespread disasters, raising higher demands for emergency grain supply. How the "15th Five-Year Plan" period will further improve emergency grain supply capabilities to ensure stability during critical moments is a topic of significant public concern. In recent years, China's emergency grain response system has been continuously refined, building a stronger foundation for emergency supply. The country has established a four-tier emergency response plan system covering national, provincial, municipal, and county levels, set up seven regional emergency grain support centers in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area, the Chengdu-Chongqing region, Central China, Northwest China, and Northeast China, and mobilized nearly 70,000 emergency grain support enterprises and over 60,000 emergency supply points nationwide. Daily emergency processing and supply capacity for grain and oil exceeds 1.8 million tons, enough to feed the entire population for two days from a single day of processing.

Qian Yi, deputy head of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, stated at the press conference that during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, efforts will focus on enhancing five key systems: emergency response planning and command, reserve inventory management, processing and distribution networks, monitoring and early warning mechanisms, and coordinated support frameworks.