The WTO noted that with the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia, a food crisis is quietly coming.
In order to attract the attention of all countries and jointly discuss countermeasures, Director-General of the World Trade Organization Iweala appealed at the Davos Economic Forum , expecting that all countries can come up with solutions.
Regarding the food crisis caused by the war between Ukraine and Russia, the main reason is that Russia and Ukraine are the world's first and fifth largest exporters respectively.
According to statistics, Russia and Ukraine's wheat exports account for one-third of the world's total, while corn exports also account for one-fifth.
Therefore, while the two countries with the largest export volume in the world are in conflict, logistics and trade disruptions have caused an irreparable food supply gap in the international food supply chain. This is the real cause of this food crisis. reason.
The food crisis is related to the development of all countries. Therefore, countries have responded actively, but some "voices" in the response have been so harsh - the United States unilaterally believes that the cause of the food crisis is not the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. caused by China.
In recent US media reports, the United States claimed that China’s population accounts for 18% of the world’s population, but it has hoarded about half of the world’s corn and wheat.
This report implies that China should not be hoarding food in this way, and accuses China of being responsible for the famine problem in poor areas and for the rise in global food prices.
If you take a closer look, anyone with some common sense should understand that these reports are simply nonsense. They are reports issued by the US media to deliberately discredit China in order to cater to US politicians.
As we all know, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine was carefully planned and created by U.S. imperialism. The intervention of the United States has intensified the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which are "originally from the same roots", thus leading to this food crisis. The initiator behind this crisis U.S. imperialism, of course.
In this regard, China is unwilling to be outdone.
On May 27, 2022, Wang Wenbin of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs made three points at a press conference to fight back against the US smear campaign.
1. China is the world’s largest food producer
Because since ancient times, our country has attached great importance to agriculture. Especially in recent decades, as our country has gone from having enough food and clothing to becoming well-off, the development of agriculture has played a very important role. Role.
"Food is the first necessity of the people", no matter when this sentence is placed, it represents the basic requirements of the people for survival. Our country has experienced several major natural disasters in modern times, so we are deeply aware of the importance of food.
In 1942, there was a great famine in Henan. The great famine of this year caused Henan's population of 30 million to drop sharply to about 21 million, which shows the severity of the famine at that time.
This famine was mainly caused by Chiang Kai-shek blowing up the Huayuankou of the Yellow River, causing the Yellow River water to change its course, causing waterlogging .
Later, due to seasonal reasons, a large number of locust plagues appeared in Henan. The people had no food to eat, and most of them even had no grass to eat.
It was precisely because of the confusion caused by the lack of food that the party and the country paid special attention to the development of agriculture in the subsequent national construction.
In our country's food plan, in addition to the well-known "father of hybrid rice" Yuan Longping, there are also "father of Beidahuang rice" Xu Yirong, "father of Chinese wheat hybrid" Li Zhensheng, "father of hybrid corn" Father" Li Denghai ...
It is precisely because of these scientists who have made great contributions to agriculture that our country's food production has increased year by year.
With the development of industrialization, China's agricultural technology has developed to a new level. It is not only able to feed itself, but also exports excess grain every year.
Since my country's agricultural reform in 1978, my country's grain output has been on the rise; By 2010, my country's total grain output had reached 546.41 million tons, which is equivalent to about 1,092.8 billion kilograms of grain. Nowadays, my country’s grain output has exceeded 1.3 trillion catties for seven consecutive years.
With such a strong grain output, there is no problem in ensuring that the Chinese people are self-sufficient from the source, and there is absolutely no need to hoard food.
Regarding the US saying that my country occupies the food market share and asking China to be responsible for the famine problem in poor areas, this is simply nonsense and nonsense.
In addition, the rise in global food prices is determined by many factors. For now, the fight between Ukraine and Russia is the most direct trigger, so it is completely irresponsible to shift the responsibility to China.
In fact, not only does our country have no need to hoard food, our country has even maintained a relatively stable food export volume in the past ten years.
According to data, in 2012, my country's grain exports were 2.77 million tons, in 2017 the grain exports were 2.8 million tons, and in 2018 the grain exports were 3.66 million tons. Until 2021, my country's total grain exports will decline. to 3.31 million tons.
Although the grain export volume will fluctuate, it is undeniable that my country's grain export volume has been in a relatively stable export state.
A country that maintains stable grain exports is accused of hoarding grain. The blame-shifting rhetoric of the United States is self-defeating.
2. China uses 9% of the world’s land and feeds 20% of the world’s population
As we all know, our country’s total area is about 9.6 million square kilometers, and the water area occupies more than 4.7 million square kilometers. The remaining millions of square kilometers Among the kilometers, there are still many mountainous areas and areas unsuitable for planting.
But even under such circumstances, China's grain output and export volume are still at the forefront of the world, and it also feeds 1/5 of the world's population.
What is the reason that allowed our country to emerge from food famine and become a major food country in just 70 years?
Throughout the development process of New China, from 1949 to 1978, our country’s main goal was to strive for food and clothing; from 1979 to 1991, the goal was to stably solve the problem of food and clothing; from 1992 to 2012, we achieved overall moderate prosperity; from 2013 to 2018, our country has made comprehensive progress Towards well-off life.
The decades between the transition from food and clothing to moderate prosperity were a critical period for my country's all-round development, and also the history of my country's transformation into a country capable of feeding 20% of the world's population.
Shortly after the founding of the People's Republic of China, US Secretary of State Acheson predicted that "due to China's overpopulation, no government can solve the Chinese people's feeding problem." Looking back now, what the US Secretary of State said was a slap in the face.
In 1950, our country promulgated the "Land Reform Law of the People's Republic of China", and about 700 million acres of land was distributed to 300 million farmers, which greatly improved farmers' production enthusiasm.
Later, our country went through a series of measures such as unified purchasing and marketing, land reclamation campaigns, and saline-alkali land management. Finally, in 1984, the country achieved a total grain output of more than 400 billion kilograms, which was nearly four times the output in 1949.
my country’s staple food, rice, has reached a yield of 1,000 kilograms per mu under the continuous research of Grandpa Yuan Longping. Now, the third-generation double-cropping super hybrid rice has exceeded the yield of 1,500 kilograms per mu. The increase in rice production has made a huge contribution to solving the food problem of our people.
By 1996, our country published the white paper "China's Food Problem", announcing that our country could achieve food self-sufficiency by relying on its own strength.
In addition to the factors of land and scientific research, the contribution of the development of science and technology to food production cannot be underestimated. Today, more than 69% of my country's crop farming operations are completed by artificial intelligence , big data computing, agricultural intelligence and other mechanized technologies.
In the Beidahuang reclamation area, technicians can accurately control the rice transplanter automatic rice transplanting with the help of the Beidou navigation system, realizing unmanned rice transplanting operations.
In addition to using satellites to farm, technicians have also changed the fate of agriculture, which is "depending on the sky to eat". They use modern technology to make agriculture smart and technological, and also increase our country's food production year by year.
At the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, my country proposed the food security strategy of "focusing on us, basing ourselves on the country, ensuring production capacity, moderate imports, and scientific and technological support" . As of now, our country has achieved a grain output of 1.3 trillion kilograms for seven consecutive years. above.
The achievement of using 9% of the world's land and feeding 20% of the world's population is something that China has achieved step by step.
Today, we have gone from having enough food and clothing to being well-off. We have abundant food. Not only can we be self-sufficient, but we also have surplus food to maintain stable exports.
This is the strength of China's agriculture. From this perspective, China has made a significant contribution to the world's food security. If China cannot supply so much food, the food famine problem will become even worse.
As a matter of fact, no matter from which perspective, China should not be treated as the source of the food crisis.
3. Diligence and frugality are the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation
In China’s five thousand years of cultural heritage, there has always been the traditional virtue of saving food.
As the saying goes "Who knows that every meal on the plate is hard work".
This is the simplest principle of saving food that almost every Chinese person has known since childhood. Whether it is parents, elders, or school teachers, they have repeatedly reminded us of the importance of saving food.
Although we are now rich in food and no longer have to worry about food and drink, the virtue of diligence and thrift is passed down endlessly like the blood flowing in the body.
Contrary to our diligence and frugality, there is waste in some developed countries. According to data, the annual food waste rate in the United States is between 30% and 40%. What is sad is that the total amount of food wasted is the total food produced in sub-Saharan Africa and other places in a year.
Some people are wasting food at will, while others are starving to death because there is no food. Ironically, nearly half of the population of Afghanistan, which is "supported" by the United States, is severely hungry.
As a major food waster, the United States does not reflect on its own behavior. In the face of international food shortages, it even tries to label our country as hoarding food.
You must know that in addition to the achievements of scientific research and technology, the biggest reason for our country's food is that we cherish the food from the heart. Only by experiencing suffering can we understand how beautiful and precious life is today.
Our country has food in its hands and does not panic. Our food is self-sufficient and is not imported from other countries. It does not pose any threat to various countries or even the world.
It is simply ridiculous for the United States to blame China for the food crisis.
However, having said that, now is not the time to hold people accountable. The coming food crisis will affect many innocent people. Is it possible that we can only sit back and wait for death in the face of this food crisis?
Of course not. The solution to this food crisis has actually been proposed long ago. The source of the food crisis comes from Ukraine and Russia, among which Russia is the world's largest food exporter.
Long ago, Russia unilaterally stated to Western countries that as long as the United States is willing to mediate between Ukraine and Russia and lift Western sanctions, Russia will do its best to solve the food crisis caused by the war between the two countries.
However, the United States, the creator of the dispute between Russia and Ukraine, was obviously not happy with Russia's statement and ignored it. As a result, the food crisis continues.
In any case, the approach of this food crisis is a wake-up call to people.
From the approach of this food crisis, we can see that diligence and thrift are not a backward "feudal" thought, but a kind of vigilance to prevent problems before they occur. At the same time, it also gives us who are born in peace and happiness a warning not to be petty. Looking at the small actions you take to save money in daily life, you can really save your life at critical moments.
Although this food crisis has a great impact on various countries, for China, the national food reserves are sufficient. This food crisis will not damage the country’s fundamentals., so the people do not need to worry too much. They usually abide by the virtues of diligence and frugality and do their best. Don't panic when you have food in hand.
Conclusion
Guan Zhong once said: " A warehouse is solid and you know etiquette; if you have enough food and clothing, you know honor and disgrace".
Only when basic needs are met can people care about propriety, justice, integrity, and and do sage things. If basic needs cannot be met, then human tragedies will happen. This is history’s advice to people, and it is also the origin of the Chinese nation’s diligence and frugality.
For thousands of years, people have verified this result with their own personal experience. Nowadays, the reason why we have such a prosperous life must be thanks to scientists who have made great contributions to the development of agriculture. If there are no people like Mr. Yuan Longping We may still not have enough of the scientific research and contributions they made.
At the same time, I would also like to thank our great country, which has always been people-oriented. Thanks to the unremitting efforts of generations of leaders, we can now have a prosperous and well-off life.
We live in peace but are prepared for danger. Although this food crisis does not threaten the foundation of China, it is also a warning to the contemporary people. If you want to not panic, you must have food in hand. Thousands of years of excellent inheritance must not disappeared in modern times.
hopes that we will lead by example, start from small things, and infect everyone around us with our diligence and frugality.
