Zhu Xinkai: Reform of the Agricultural Major System from the Perspective of the Whole Food Chain

Title: Re-understanding Agriculture

former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger once said: Whoever controls oil controls all countries, and whoever controls food controls all mankind. This is not only a high degree of understanding, but also a strategic thinking.

In China, most people do not have a deep understanding of agriculture. I have been calling on the whole society to re-understand agriculture, because this is the foundation of China's sustainable development.

Versatility of the eternal charm of the industry

over the past 30 years of reform and opening up, although we have repeatedly stressed the importance of agriculture and rural work, there is no doubt that with economic development and social progress, the whole society has shown a growing "separation from agriculture" complex.

The relatively low efficiency of agriculture and its basic status of social and economic development determine that "leaving agriculture" means "leaving poverty". The huge difference in identity-related interests between urban and rural areas determines "leaving agriculture" and also means "leaving the identity of farmers". These are the most rational choices, which are understandable. However, when this complex of "leaving agriculture" and "ignorance of agriculture" are deeply rooted in the brains of more and more people and have an impact on the whole society, this complex of "leaving agriculture" will inevitably be alienated into the blind exclusion of "agriculture, rural areas and farmers", which leads to our economic development and social progress going astray.

Agriculture is a set of technology, economy, politics and national security in one, accompanied and supported the entire history of human evolution, and with the development and progress of society, more and more functional eternal charm industry.

When urbanization in the real sense is completed, "farmers" will not only be "agricultural practitioners", and "agricultural practitioners" will not only be the initial producers of agricultural products, but also the innovators of agricultural added value and the builders of agricultural-related industrial value chains. "Countryside" will evolve into "small towns", "micro towns" and "large-scale farms". They are even more competitive than cities in their living environment. "Counter-urbanization" is the most typical example.

by that time, the concept of "agriculture, rural areas and farmers" will naturally disappear, but agriculture will still be an eternal industry. If we cannot understand agriculture from this concept, dealing with international competition in the 21st century will only be empty talk.

The strategic position of agriculture

we can also learn from other countries. The United States has long been separated from the agricultural society and is a developed industrial country. However, the largest federal government department in the United States, except for the Pentagon, the Department of Defense is the Department of Agriculture. The weapons that the United States controls and attacks the world are not nuclear weapons at all, but agricultural products.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger once said that whoever controls oil controls all countries, and whoever controls food controls all mankind. This is not only a high degree of understanding, but also a strategic thinking. This kind of thinking is even more necessary for a big country that must put its job in its own hands.

The top-level design of agriculture and food management from the perspective of the "whole food chain" is a common experience in developed countries. The so-called "whole food chain" emphasizes the management of the whole chain from the field to the table, and it is not only limited to food security, but also emphasizes food security. At present, my country does not have a national-level and systematic food security system and strategy.

Combined with the reality of our country, food safety should be defined as "ensuring that people can obtain sufficient, high-quality, nutritious and reasonable food supply through appropriate channels at any time to meet people's food needs for survival and health". To achieve food security in the current complex domestic and international environment, it is necessary to establish a supply and demand control system for all kinds of food under the premise of ensuring food supply.

problems and challenges

however, the current top-level design of China's agriculture and food management is actually based on the division and division of food as a chain, and the management functions of agriculture and food have been dispersed to a number of non-agricultural sectors. There are as many as a dozen ministries and commissions involved in agricultural functions in China. Compared with developed countries, my country's current agricultural administrative management system is divided into departments, independent, unclear tasks, decentralized management, inconsistent tasks and methods, and competing for favorable things between departments, and shirking each other for unprofitable things. If something happens, everyone will work together. If something goes wrong, no one will be responsible. It is difficult to resolve contradictions through consultation between departments. A large number of contradictions can only be handed over to the State Council. The leaders of the State Council are busy with coordination, which leads to higher decision-making costs and lower decision-making efficiency, making it more difficult to implement government orders.

Departmental interests also permeate the formulation of policies and laws, resulting in the introduction of policies and laws with a lot of wrangling, difficulties and a long time. After the introduction, there is no specific department to supervise the implementation, which can not achieve the desired effect.

The formation of this system has its historical reasons, and the relevant reforms need to be further deepened. The slower we reform, the further down the wrong path. In recent years, the persistent inefficiency of agricultural investment is the most classic "endorsement" of the separation of top-level agricultural and food management functions ".

China's current attitude towards agriculture can actually be interpreted as "attaching importance to agricultural policies and despising the agricultural sector; attaching importance to agricultural funds and despising investment efficiency", if the efficiency of agricultural investment is always low, even if there is a substantial increase in annual agricultural funds, what is the point? The experience of developed countries tells us that agriculture is an industry with strong industrial attributes, and its functions are not suitable for being dispersed in various other non-agricultural sectors. Therefore, the reform of the major ministries of agriculture is the fundamental solution to all problems including food security, food safety, agricultural efficiency, and farmers' income.

From the top-level design point of view, we are currently divided into departments with grain as the chain. From the perspective of policy implementation, we are still a policy system that emphasizes traditional food security. In theory, the realization of food security has three stages, the first stage of food security is quantity guarantee, the second stage of food security is quality guarantee, the third stage of food security is to emphasize the protection of food nutrition and meet the preferences of consumers.

At present, China is in the process of transition from the second stage to the third stage. Therefore, it is an important prerequisite for the reform of agriculture and food system to adjust the traditional food security strategy to food security strategy.

In short, the top-level design of the management system of agriculture and food industry from the height of food safety, so that all related functions of agriculture can be returned to the management departments of agriculture and food industry, and the reform of agricultural super-ministry system from the perspective of "whole food chain" is the biggest issue facing China's agricultural and rural reform, and it is also one of the most urgent tasks.

Source: China Rural Discovery | Time: January 18, 2016 | Responsible Editor: Zhai Tianchang