China’s first special plan for green agricultural development has been released.

On September 7, 2021, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs publicly issued the joint document jointly released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, and the National Forestry and Grassland Administration. “14th Five-Year Plan for National Green Agricultural Development” Notice. Requirements:

We must align our goals, focus on key tasks for green agricultural development, draw up detailed lists, refine implementation measures, and ensure that each item is carried out. We should concentrate resources—capital, talent, technology, and other factors—on priority areas and regions, harnessing synergy to elevate the quality of agricultural development. Moreover, we need to pool strengths by innovating governance mechanisms, fostering a model in which government provides guidance, the market takes the lead, and society actively participates.

The development plan clearly outlines the planning context and overarching objectives, calling for strengthened protection and sustainable utilization of agricultural resources to enhance resilience; intensified prevention and control of non-point source pollution in agriculture to improve environmental protection at production sites; enhanced ecological restoration and environmental conservation in agriculture to bolster ecosystem‑based functions; the creation of a green, low‑carbon agricultural value chain to raise the quality, efficiency, and competitiveness of the sector; the establishment of a robust green‑technology innovation system to reinforce scientific and technological support for green agricultural development; and the refinement of institutional mechanisms to invigorate momentum for green agricultural growth.

The development plan underscores the paramount importance of accelerating green agricultural development. Since the 13th Five-Year Plan period, China has made significant strides in this area, including strengthened conservation and sustainable use of agricultural resources, notable progress in controlling non-point source pollution, and the gradual establishment of a support system for green agriculture.

Of course, China’s green agricultural development is still in its infancy and continues to face numerous difficulties and challenges. These include the incomplete integration of the green development philosophy into practice, relatively extensive production methods, and an incentive‑and‑constraint mechanism for green development that remains imperfect.

At the same time, challenges are accompanied by opportunities—whether in policy, market demand, technological advancement, or other areas. The 14th Five-Year Plan period will be a critical strategic window for accelerating the green development of agriculture.

Development Goals:

By 2025, green agricultural development will be comprehensively advanced, with a largely sound institutional framework and working mechanisms, stronger scientific and technological support and policy safeguards, and significant progress in the green transformation of rural production and lifestyles—marked by substantially improved resource utilization, markedly enhanced environmental quality at production sites, notable improvements in agricultural ecosystems, a substantial increase in the supply of green products, and a significant strengthening of capacity for emission reduction and carbon sequestration.

By 2035, significant progress will have been made in green agricultural development; the rural ecological environment will have fundamentally improved; green production and lifestyles will be widely adopted; agricultural production will be broadly aligned with the carrying capacity of resources and the environment; a new pattern of agricultural development that harmonizes production, living, and ecology will be essentially established; and a beautiful, livable, prosperous, and harmonious socialist countryside will be largely built.

Specific objectives:

1. From 2025 to [year], a cumulative total of 1.075 billion mu of high-standard farmland will be built, and 100 million mu of black soil will be protected and utilized.

2. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, an additional 60 million mu of highly efficient water-saving irrigation will be developed.

3. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the total ammonia emissions from large-scale livestock farms in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region and its surrounding areas will be reduced by 5%.

4. Implement demonstration projects for safe agricultural land-use technologies in 100 counties with extensive soil contamination, aiming to achieve a safe utilization rate of approximately 93% for contaminated farmland by 2025.

5. Establish 800 green, standardized agricultural product production bases and 500 standardized demonstration farms for livestock and poultry breeding.

6. Develop or revise 1,000 industry standards related to green agricultural production.

With regard to strengthening the prevention and control of agricultural non-point source pollution, the development plan stipulates:

Promote the substitution of organic fertilizers, implement green pest and disease management, improve the system for the resourceful utilization of livestock and poultry manure, advance circular green farming practices, and promote the comprehensive utilization of crop straw.

Promote the recycling and reuse of agricultural mulch film, and facilitate the processing and reutilization of used mulch film. (In the Northwest region, support a number of major mulch‑film‑using counties to implement county‑wide initiatives for mulch‑film recycling.) Strengthen the management of pesticide packaging waste, and encourage measures such as deposit systems and paid‑collection programs to incentivize the recovery of pesticide packaging waste.

With regard to strengthening ecological protection and restoration in agriculture, the development plan stipulates:

Implement crop rotation in regions such as Northeast China, the Huang–Huai–Hai Plain, and the Yangtze River Basin, and adopt fallow practices in areas suffering from groundwater over-extraction and severe ecological degradation, thereby promoting the restoration of farmland and its sustainable development. Conduct surveys on soil pollution, implement classified management of farmland soil environmental quality, and carry out remediation of contaminated farmland on a case-by-case basis, tailored to specific categories and zones.

Build agro-ecological systems, protect and restore forest and grassland ecosystems, and unlock the ecological value of agriculture—promote carbon sequestration and emission reductions in the agricultural sector, strengthen the carbon‑sequestration capacity of forests, grasslands, farmlands, and soils, develop technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions throughout crop and livestock production processes, design energy‑efficient equipment for facility‑based agriculture, agricultural and fishery machinery, slaughter and processing, and storage and transportation, innovate technological frameworks for the resource‑ and energy‑recovery utilization of agricultural waste, and carry out demonstration projects on emission reduction, carbon sequestration, and energy substitution.

Promote agricultural ecological restoration in the Yangtze River Economic Belt and strengthen agricultural ecological protection in the Yellow River Basin.

In building a green, low-carbon agricultural industrial chain, the development plan stipulates:

Promote the green transformation of the agricultural processing industry—by reducing losses during processing, implementing tiered utilization, and fostering circular development; develop green, low-carbon transportation for agricultural products; popularize green e‑commerce models for agricultural goods; and stimulate consumption of environmentally friendly agricultural products.

Promote circular agricultural production and industrial clustering, rationally select development models for the agricultural circular economy, facilitate the resource‑based, industrialized, and high‑value utilization of agricultural waste, develop a circular forestry economy, and advance low‑carbon, circular development in agricultural parks.

With regard to strengthening scientific and technological support for green agricultural development, the development plan stipulates:

Strengthen the development of scientific research infrastructure and ecological monitoring systems, and organize collaborative research efforts focused on deep water conservation in agriculture, precision fertilization and pesticide application, remediation of heavy metal and non-point source pollution, and restoration of degraded farmland. Promote the research, development, and manufacturing of critical components such as high-efficiency, energy-saving agricultural engines, high-speed precision seeders, and sprayer nozzles, and drive the upgrading of conventional agricultural machinery toward green, efficient, intelligent, and multifunctional designs. Expand the scope of subsidies to include more equipment and smart technologies that support the green development of agriculture.

Establish a number of national- and provincial/ministerial-level (key) laboratories and agricultural science observation and experimental stations, and organize the modern agricultural industry‑technology system to advance green technology innovation. Guide large agricultural enterprise groups to set up platforms for green technology innovation and establish green technology innovation centers. Accelerate the development of agricultural green‑development science and technology innovation alliances.

Support agricultural research institutions and universities in establishing technology transfer centers, innovation‑incubation platforms, and entrepreneurship bases; regularly publish information on scientific and technological achievements and related intellectual property rights, and promote the effective alignment of these advances with green industries through mechanisms such as R&D collaboration, technology transfer, licensing, and equity‑based investment; establish an incentive system for the commercialization of green‑development technologies; and conduct national monitoring and early warning for green development in agriculture and rural areas.

Source: Environmental Protection Online Station