Readjustment of Cultivation Structure Quickened

The "2000 Crop Sowing Situation" announced by the National Bureau of Statistics on June 29 shows that farmers' reaction to the State policies and market demand and their bearing capacity are being gradually enhanced, and the pace of the readjustment of the rural cultivation structure is being quickened.

Statistics show that the area sown to early rice this year is 6,800,000 hectares, down 850,000 hectares from the same period last year. The sown area of spring wheat is 2.55 million hectares, down 780,000 hectares. By the end of May, the area planted with jute and bluish dog-bane had reached 34,000 hectares, 14,000 hectares less than in the same period last year. The area of sugar-bearing crops was close to 1.28 million hectares, a reduction of 142,000 hectares. The area of cotton and cured tobacco took a restorative growing trend, with the area sown to spring cotton reaching3.52 million hectares, up 69,000 hectares. Reports from different regions say that increase in the cotton sown area can be attributed to two factors, first, the influence of the macro international environment, and the rise in cotton price brought about by improved situation in the textile industry; second, the constant rise in cotton production technique has increasingly improved the quality of cotton; rise in output and improvement in efficiency have enhanced farmers' confidence in cultivation.



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