By Abdullahi Lukman
China plans to further revitalize its seed industry by developing advanced crop varieties in a bid to strengthen food security and achieve greater self-reliance in seed technology, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Han Jun said on Monday.
Speaking during ministerial interviews at the country’s ongoing annual parliamentary meetings known as the Two Sessions, Han said accelerating the development and renewal of crop varieties is essential to ensuring stable food supply from the source.
The announcement comes as the government sets a grain production target of about 700 million metric tons, highlighted in the national Government Work Report as a key objective for economic and social development.
Han said the country has made significant progress since launching a national seed industry revitalization initiative in 2021. China now relies mainly on domestically developed seeds for major agricultural products, including grains, vegetables, livestock and aquatic species, ensuring a stable supply of essential varieties.
To support innovation, the government has established a national germplasm resource bank for crops and livestock.
According to Han, the country has also introduced advanced technologies such as an intelligent breeding model known as SeedLLM and an automated breeding robot called GEAIR, both designed to improve crop development efficiency.
During the current 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025), technological advancements have played a major role in modernizing the agricultural sector.
Han said the contribution rate of agricultural science and technology now exceeds 64 percent, while improved seed coverage has surpassed 96 percent nationwide.
Mechanization in farming has also increased significantly. The comprehensive mechanization rate for crop cultivation and harvesting has reached 76.7 percent, with full mechanization already achieved for major staple crops.
China is also expanding the use of digital technologies in agriculture. More than 300,000 drones were deployed across farms last year, covering about 30.67 million hectares of farmland, the largest scale of agricultural drone use globally.
In addition, farmers are increasingly adopting smart technologies such as automated harvesting robots, intelligent irrigation systems and AI-powered laser weeding machines.
Han added that the country has developed or upgraded about 66.67 million hectares of high-standard farmland, helping improve agricultural resilience and strengthen disaster prevention and mitigation capacity in the sector.
