China to ensure summer grain harvest despite fall setbacks

China's agricultural authorities will make all-out efforts to ensure a harvest of summer grains despite the challenges caused by floods during the sowing period last fall, a senior official said on Wednesday.

Tang Renjian, minister of agriculture and rural affairs, said that a third of the country's wheat-growing areas were planted late due to the floods in Hebei, Henan, and Shandong provinces.

"Though the sowing area remains the same as last year, growing conditions have been complicated, which poses challenges to the summer grain harvest," Tang said.

He said summer harvest accounts for a fifth of annual grain production, and China will overcome the difficulties to win the first grain harvest battle of the year.

The minister made the remarks during a news conference to explain the contents of the No 1 Central Document, which was unveiled on Tuesday.

Measures will be focused on three key growing periods to recover production about 100 days before the large-scale harvest of summer grain, he said.

Local authorities have deployed teams to farms to offer guidance and reduce production loss.

Meanwhile, China will focus on preventing natural disasters that may affect future agricultural production, as extreme weather conditions are more likely to occur this year.

Agricultural subsidies will be provided to farmers for the purchase of pesticides and fertilizers, and to support spring plowing, he added.