An article in Nikkei Asia (December 23) quoted Qin Yuyun, head of grain reserves at the National Food and
Strategic Reserves Administration, as telling reporters in November reported that China is maintaining its
food stockpiles at a "historically high level." He said "Our wheat stockpiles can meet demand for one and a
half years. There is no problem whatsoever about the supply of food." According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, China is expected to have 69% of the globe's maize reserves in the first half of
crop year 2022, 60% of its rice and 51% of its wheat. The projections represent increases of around 20
percentage points over the past 10 years, and the data clearly shows that China continues to hoard grain.
China spent $98.1 billion importing food (beverages are not included) in 2020, up 4.6 times from a decade
earlier, according to the General Administration of Customs of China. In the January-September period of
2021, China imported more food than it had since at least 2016, which is as far back as comparable data goes.
The report added that over the past five years, China's soybean, maize, and wheat imports soared two- to
twelvefold on aggressive purchases from the U.S., Brazil, and other supplier nations. Imports of beef, pork,
dairy, and fruit jumped two- to fivefold. Goro Takahashi, Professor Emeritus at Aichi University and expert
on Chinese agriculture, said China's production of wheat and other provisions as well as the amount of land
used for agriculture plateaued in 2015. He said "Agricultural productivity in China is low due to the
dispersion of farmland and soil contamination. The amount of agricultural production will continue to stall
as farmers migrate to urban areas."
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