The Chinese Government issued a white paper on food security on October 14, titled Food Security in China, detailing the efforts to enhance food security and expand international cooperation in the area.

Despite a weak agricultural foundation and extreme poverty, the Communist Party of China's unremitting campaign over the past 70 years has made China basically self-sufficient in food supply, the document said.

Following the principle of basic food self-sufficiency based on domestic grain production, China is protecting its farmland and implementing a strategy of sustainable farmland use and innovative application of agricultural technology to increase farmland productivity.

Through supply-side structural reform and institutional innovation, grain productivity has been raised, grain circulation modernized and the food supply structure improved. The grain industry has been steadily developed, the white paper said.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that between 1949 and 2018, China's total grain output rose by nearly five times from 113 million tons to 658 million tons, while the per-capita output more than doubled from 209 kg to 472 kg.

"Looking to the future, China has the conditions, capabilities and confidence to enhance food security relying on its own efforts," the white paper said.

However, it added that in the medium to long term, China's grain production and demand will remain closely aligned, which means efforts to ensure food security must not slacken.

The world today is still facing severe food security challenges, with over 800 million people suffering from hunger and food trade disrupted by protectionism and unilateralism.

In view of these challenges, China will follow its own path and implement its national strategies for food security and rural vitalization through sustainable farmland use and agricultural technology innovation to increase farmland productivity. The aim is to advance from being a large grain producer to a food industry power, ensuring the security of its "rice bowl".

By 2022, 66.67 million hectares of high-quality farmland will be developed, and by 2035, the grain planting area will be kept generally steady. The management of emergency grain reserves will be improved and a modern grain market system will be built.

Upholding its "red line of absolute food security and zero risk to farmers from low grain prices", China will adapt to World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, reform its grain purchase, storage systems and pricing mechanisms to give full play to the decisive role of the market in allocating grain resources, which will enable the government play its role better.

The assistance to other developing countries will continue within the framework of South-South cooperation to the best of China's ability. China will also promote the sound development of the global food industry.

Efforts are on to achieve the goals set in the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: "End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture."

China will enhance grain trade cooperation with other countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative to establish a new international platform for grain cooperation and facilitate free and orderly flow of agricultural resources and deep integration of their markets.

Efforts will be made to support grain enterprises in "going global" and bringing in imports to make rational use of both domestic and international markets and resources.

China will explore new modes of international food cooperation and conduct multifaceted and advanced cooperation with other countries.

"Observing WTO rules, China will do all it can to make the international food supply more secure, stable and rational in order to better safeguard the food security of our world," the white paper said.