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Nation has reached 'world-class level' in some research areas, scientist reports Technological breakthroughs have resulted in an increased output of
soybeans in China in recent years, and further progress is expected to
improve domestic supply, said a top expert. "National support for agricultural scientific and technological
research that covers the whole chain of agricultural production has
played a crucial role in ensuring food security, which has withstood
tests such as the COVID-19 pandemic," said Han Tianfu, chief scientist
for soybeans under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. "In terms of scientific research on soybeans, China has continued to
make progress in recent years and has reached world-class level in some
research fields." Last year, Chinese scientists published over 700 soybean research
papers in English in various influential international science journals,
more than any other country in the world, said Han, also a researcher
at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. With the adoption of new technologies, per-hectare production of
soybeans in China reached more than 1.9 metric tons last year, an
increase of 83 percent since 1978, he said. A number of scientific and
technological achievements have been made in soybeans in recent years,
contributing to increased yields. In recent years, about 200 new soybean cultivars have been released
annually, extending soybean production to most parts of China, Han said.
Zhonghuang-13, a superior cultivar bred by scientists from the Chinese
Academy of Agricultural Sciences, had been grown in over 7 million
hectares of farmland across China by the end of 2018, which helped
increase yields by 16 percent in Anhui province. In Xinxiang, Henan province, soybean yields exceeded 4.6 tons per
hectare in a pilot farmland last year, 2.5 times the national average
level, due to promotion of new farming technologies that involved
innovative no-tillage and stalk-covering methods, Han said.
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