BEIJING, China (Reuters) — China is seeking to cap the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, which have helped contaminate large swaths of its arable land and threaten its ability to meet domestic food demand.
More than 19 percent of soil samples taken from Chinese farmland have been found to contain excessive levels of heavy metals or chemical waste. More than three-quarters of the rice fields in central Hunan province have been contaminated, government research has shown.
China is the world’s top user of pesticides, but almost two-thirds of them are wasted, contaminating both land and water, an environment official said last year.
Read Also
Canada’s plant hardiness zones receive update
The latest update to Canada’s plant hardiness zones and plant hardiness maps was released this summer.
“We need to be determined to control the use of fertilizer and pesticides,” said Bi Meijia, chief economist at the agriculture ministry.
Zhejiang province in eastern China plans to cut the use of nitrogen fertilizer by eight percent in the next three years, Bi said, and the entire country could cap the growth in use of fertilizer and pesticides by 2020.
Still, China is aiming to remain self-sufficient in its staple crops, even as it moves to control pesticide and fertilizer use, said Bi and another agricultural official.
China recorded a bumper grain harvest this year, with production up one percent to 607.1 million tonnes, official data showed. It was the 11th consecutive year of rising production.
Global markets closely watch China’s grain production because any decline in production could boost demand for imports by the rapidly urbanizing country.
Bi said China will look to import products in short supply on the domestic market, but inbound shipments are not expected to increase substantially.
