China to promote crop production, farmland protection in 2021: minister

China will secure crop production, develop the seed industry and strengthen farmland protection in 2021 to promote rural vitalization and accelerate agricultural and rural modernization, the country's agriculture minister said.

China will strive to ensure that crop output exceeds 650 billion kg this year in a bid to secure the nation's food supply, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Tang Renjian said.

To shore up the seed industry, China will commence research on core technologies, launch major projects for biological breeding, and set up pools of crop seeds and marine fish and livestock species, Tang said.

In the 2021-2022 period, 100 million mu (about 6.66 million hectares) of high-standard farmland will be constructed each year, said Tang.

The ministry will also make efforts to modernize rural industrial and supply chains, stabilize the recovery of hog production, and improve the quality and safety of agricultural products, Tang said.