China’s potato planting areas to reach 6.67 million hectares by 2020

China will further boost potato production to make the tuber one of the nation's staple foods, the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said Tuesday.

By 2020, China will have more than 6.67 million hectares of potato planting areas, 30 percent of which can be processed into staple food, according to a document released by the MOA.

Potato consumed as a staple food will account for 30 percent of all output by then, the statement said.

To achieve the goal, China will better design and plan the planting of potatoes according to local resources, diversify the variety of staple food based on market demand, improve support for staple food production, and modernize food processing.

In terms of water and land usage, the potato industry will not interfere with growth of China's top three staple grains -- rice, wheat and corn.

China is the world's largest potato producer with planting area of around 5.6 million hectares.