Augment agriculture’s ability to resist climate risks

The heavy rainfall in Henan, Hebei, Shaanxi and Shandong provinces, all major production bases for grains and vegetables, has affected market supply.

The hike in the prices of seeds, fertilizers and pesticides has further driven up the cost of vegetable growing that is transmitted to the retail prices of vegetables.

Based on historical experience, some argue that with the start of a new planting cycle, the vegetable supply gap will soon be filled, and the vegetable price will fall accordingly.

However, it should be noted that both the extreme weather events and the soaring prices of the agricultural production materials are not accidental events, and they will last and overlap as defining traits of the new normal that the farmers will have to live with.

The country”s efforts to cut carbon emissions will also impact agricultural production, which has always been a large consumer of resources and energy.

These changes mean that the agricultural infrastructure of the country that was largely built before extreme weather events became so frequent and emissions reduction became a must has become outdated.

The agricultural administrative departments should draw a lesson from the dramatic rise in the price of vegetables, and take precautions against the impact of climate change on food prices.

The government should continue to increase its input in the modernization of agricultural infrastructure and seed breeding, and reduce the taxes and fees for the producers of fertilizers, pesticides and mulch so as to help farmers improve their ability to fend off the impacts of extreme weather events and inflation.

These inputs directly concern the country’s food security and people’s livelihoods, and should be made a priority on the government’s to-do list.

Modernizing the agricultural infrastructure will also lay a solid foundation for the agricultural industry to save energy and resources.

The government should prioritize helping local farmers to recover agricultural production as soon as possible through providing them with subsidies and essential production materials once extreme weather events hit a region.

Otherwise, the whole country might have to suffer from the long-tail effects of natural disasters.