The Challenges and Strategies of Food Security under Rapid Urbanization in China

• Published in: Sustainability 2019-01, Vol.11 (2), p.542
• Main Author: Wang, Yong-sheng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural engineering; Agricultural land; Agricultural management; Agricultural production; Agriculture; Cultivated lands; Cultivation; Eggs; Food consumption; Food production; Food safety; Food security; Food supply; Food waste; Grain; Imports; Land area; Meat; Per capita; Production capacity; Rural areas; Self sufficiency; Sustainability; Urban agriculture; Urban areas; Urbanization; Water consumption; Water management; Water shortages
• ISSN: 2071-1050; 2071-1050
• DOI: 10.3390/su11020542

Food security has received wide attention in China for a long time due to the challenges of a huge population and limited farmland area. Under conditions of rapid urbanization, the food scenario has changed, creating major challenges for massive populations in China. This paper intends to reveal the impact of urbanization on food security and to propose strategies for mitigating the threats to it. Total grain production has continuously increased, but most of the grain production has been distributed in the northern region since 2006. Although the per capita rural income has increased significantly since 1980, the agricultural income ratio has consistently declined from 56.13% in 1983 to 26.61% in 2012. A dramatic shift in food consumption away from grain towards meat, poultry, eggs, milk and liquor has been found in both rural and urban areas. The faster agricultural water consumption growth in northern China over southern China helped close the gap. There has been net increase of cultivated land in northern China, whereas southern China has seen a net decrease. The medium- and low-level cultivation ratios of land were 52.84% and 17.69%, respectively, in 2015. This paper concluded that food security in China could be ensured by increasing production and optimizing consumption. It suggested that enhanced grain production capacity, strict water management, and land consolidation engineering as well as agricultural industrialization could be used for maintaining grain production. Food consumption itself can be managed by optimizing resident dietary pattern, reducing food waste, adjusting grain consumption structure and moderating food imports policy.