China's grain output tops 714 mln tonnes in 2025

China has achieved another year of bumper grain harvest in 2025, with the total output hitting a record high of 714.88 million tonnes, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Friday.

The figure represents a year-on-year increase of 1.2 percent, according to the NBS.

The bumper harvest is driven by increases in both planting area and per-unit yield, according to Lyu Xiutao, deputy director of the Crop Production Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

"This year, the country's grain planting areas expanded for the sixth consecutive year, particularly with corn, a high-yield crop, seeing an increase of 3.3 million mu (about 220,000 hectares), laying a solid foundation for a bumper harvest this year," he said.

In addition, China has strengthened its action plan to expand the planting of soybeans and oil crops, involving 702 counties. Key measures have been implemented to enhance the integration of quality land, seeds, machinery, and agricultural practices, which have improved technical implementation rates and equipment compatibility, facilitating balanced production increases across vast areas.

"In 2025, nationwide grain planting areas utilizing integrated water and fertilizer management reached over 88 million mu (about 5.87 million hectares), with dense planting in the Northeast covering 89 million mu (about 5.92 million hectares). In the Huang-Huai-Hai region, drought-resistant and lodging-resistant varieties have been promoted, increasing the number of plants by 200 to 500 per mu. In the southern region, centralized rice seedling cultivation expanded to 75 million mu (5 million hectares). These initiatives have consistently unlocked yield potential, with improvements in per-unit yield accounting for more than 90 percent of the overall increase in grain production," said Lyu.

The authorities have also rolled out technical guidelines for disaster prevention and mitigation concerning crops affected by spring droughts, summer heat, or autumn rains. The central government has allocated over 6 billion yuan (about 850 million U.S. dollars) in financial assistance for drought resistance, flood prevention, and pest control, aimed at minimizing losses.

"In 2025, China's grain production has achieved another high-yield increase, setting a record high. Seasonally, the main growth occurred in autumn grains. Regionally, the increases were primarily in the Northeast and Northwest. Inn terms of crops, the primary increase was in corn," said Lyu.

China's grain output tops 714 mln tonnes in 2025

A Chinese envoy on Thursday called for international efforts to help Central African states enhance their capacity for independent security.

Security issues in Central Africa remain worrisome as violent extremist incidents occur frequently in the Lake Chad basin and the number of terrorist attacks in the region has long remained high, Sun Lei, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, told the Security Council.

"The international community should uphold the concept of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security and provide greater support in areas such as situational awareness, financial input, intelligence and early warning to help countries in the region enhance their capacity for independent security and reinforce the region's security defenses," he said.

The international community should provide constructive support, based on the specific national conditions of countries in the region, in fields such as election financing, reconciliation and mediation, and institutional reform, so as to play a positive role in helping these countries steadily advance their political and peace processes, the envoy noted.

At present, many countries in the region still face development challenges including high inflation, reduced aid, and difficulties in debt repayment, although the region's economy has generally achieved moderate growth, he said.

The international community, especially developed countries and multilateral financial institutions, should take actions to ease the debt burdens of countries in the region and support them in strengthening capacity in poverty reduction, employment, trade and infrastructure in line with their own development needs, so as to enhance their development resilience and consolidate the foundations for peace, he said.

Noting that China and Africa are good friends and good partners, Sun said that China firmly supports African countries in exploring a path toward modernization suited to their own national conditions.

At last month's Johannesburg summit of the Group of 20, China and South Africa jointly launched the Initiative on Cooperation Supporting Modernization in Africa. China stands ready to work with African countries to implement the key areas of cooperation outlined in the initiative and to provide support for peace, stability, development and prosperity in Central Africa, said Sun.

Chinese envoy calls for int'l efforts to help Central African countries enhance security capacity