Facility agriculture, where does the land come from?

Currently, in order to implement the “long teeth” measures for protecting arable land, resolutely curb the “non agricultural” of arable land, and effectively prevent the “non grain” of arable land, the state strictly prohibits the occupation of permanent basic farmland, strictly controls the use of general arable land, and implements the policy of “import and export balance” of arable land within the year for newly added facility agricultural land. There is a view in society that policies are too strict, which limits the normal development of facility agriculture. In this regard, the author believes that we should adhere to the combination of rigidity and elasticity, comply with the requirements of multi-objective balance, adhere to the concept of “good farmland grain use”, and take maintaining national food security and implementing the same responsibility of the Party and government for farmland protection as the starting point to promote the healthy and orderly development of facility agriculture.This year’s No. 1 central document of the Central Committee proposed that we should firmly adhere to the bottom line of ensuring food security, develop modern facility agriculture and strengthen the protection and use control of cultivated land, seek a multi-objective balance, and put forward new requirements for the land use policy of facility agriculture. Currently, in order to implement the “long teeth” measures for protecting arable land, resolutely curb the “non agricultural” of arable land, and effectively prevent the “non grain” of arable land, the state strictly prohibits the occupation of permanent basic farmland, strictly controls the use of general arable land, and implements the policy of “import and export balance” of arable land within the year for newly added facility agricultural land. There is a view in society that policies are too strict, which limits the normal development of facility agriculture.In this regard, the author believes that we should adhere to the combination of rigidity and elasticity, comply with the requirements of multi-objective balance, adhere to the concept of “good farmland grain use”, and take maintaining national food security and implementing the same responsibility of the Party and government for farmland protection as the starting point to promote the healthy and orderly development of facility agriculture.22.jpgThe connotation and characteristics of current policiesSince September 2020, documents such as the “Notice of the General Office of the State Council on Resolutely Stopping the” Non agricultural Conversion “of arable land”, the “Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Preventing the” Non grain Conversion “of arable land and Stabilizing Grain Production”, and the “Notice of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Forestry and Grassland Administration on Strictly Controlling the Use of Cultivated Land” have been successively issued. The main idea of the New Deal is to ‘each return to their own position’, to prohibit offside, to ensure sufficient filling, and to achieve multi-objective balance and precise policy implementation.First, ensure the grain use of good farmland, substantially protect the essence of cultivated land, and maintain food security. The new policy strictly controls the construction land for three types of agricultural facilities: newly added livestock and poultry breeding facilities, aquaculture facilities, and planting facilities that damage the cultivation layer. Any “good farmland without grain” is prohibited. Starting from January 1, 2022, the law enforcement images of this type of issue have been identified as illegal and non grain based land use. The recognition of facility agricultural land is based on the information stored in the image above, and those that are not stored in the image as required will not be recognized in management.Secondly, prioritize rigid control, balance flexible supply, and promote precise policy implementation. For the newly added three types of facility agricultural land, the new policy first clarifies the “rigid” requirements, prohibiting the occupation of permanent basic farmland and strictly controlling the use of general farmland; At the same time, taking into account “elasticity”, it is proposed that if it is necessary to use general arable land, a “balance in and out” of arable land must be implemented within the year. Compared to previous policies on facility agriculture land use, the current pressure to consolidate the foundation of food security is greater. The new policy adheres to the principles of “unchanged” and “change”, maintaining a “strict” norm for the occupation of permanent basic farmland and regulating the control and constraint mechanism for the use of general farmland. It can be said that it has been upgraded to meet the practical needs of multi-objective balance.Five major confusions and analysisDuring the policy adaptation period, some experts, scholars, grassroots workers, and investment operators’ confusion about the current management and utilization of facility agricultural land can be broadly divided into the following aspects:Firstly, will the new policy restrict the development of facility agriculture?According to the principle of “each returning to its own position”, “good farmland without grain” and arbitrary and extensive utilization belong to “offside” and should be prohibited; Renovation and upgrading, as well as large-scale operation, belong to the category of “replacement” and should be fully guaranteed. Adequate protection “is reflected in institutional flexibility and appropriate measures. The term ‘institutional flexibility’ includes time flexibility in plan formulation, transition flexibility in system transition, and spatial flexibility in implementation balance. The overall plan for the “balance of input and output” of arable land is organized and implemented by the county-level government on an annual basis. The scale, layout, timing, and implementation of balance arrangements are all arranged on the annual timeline, highlighting scientific, planned, and orderly nature, and pushing forward work tasks to ensure overall coordination. The new policy not only strengthens policy guidance, but also leaves a transitional buffer, emphasizing that the storage (filing) of the above image is not a barrier, but rather a standardized guidance for site selection from the source to prevent disorderly use of illegal and irregular land that touches the red line, which belongs to substantive protection in advance; For policies that have been implemented before the issuance and comply with the spirit of relevant documents, they are allowed to continue to be implemented. For those that do not comply, they can be disposed of according to relevant documents and specific provincial implementation measures. When there are difficulties in implementing the “import and export balance” within the county level, the new policy also proposes that it can be coordinated and implemented within the city and province levels. The “appropriate measures” include calculating the annual amount of cultivated land and comprehensively improving the overall land use and expanding new sources. Based on the results of the annual land change survey, the state calculates the inflow and outflow of arable land in the form of “accounting for large accounts”, and determines whether the annual “balance of inflow and outflow” of arable land has been implemented, without specific reference to the land plot; From the perspective of inflow sources, we are not only focusing on other agricultural land that can be “restored” or “restored by engineering”, but also on a large number of “small, scattered, disorderly” idle and inefficient agricultural facility construction land, and by promoting comprehensive land consolidation and “expanding new sources” throughout the region. Therefore, the new policy will not only limit the development of facility agriculture, but also provide assistance for the scientific and standardized development of facility agriculture.Secondly, will stable production and supply of live pigs trigger another change in land use policies?Fluctuation in pig prices is a normal phenomenon in a market economy. The price of pork is related to people’s livelihood, and the state has always attached great importance to it. The No. 1 central document of the Central Committee has repeatedly mentioned the stable production and supply of live pigs. However, for facility land, preferential policies have been introduced only at the two historical high points of pork growth (2007 and 2019), while also ensuring agricultural land use and resolutely eliminating the requirement of “occupying but not raising”. From the perspective of later implementation, these preferential policies have achieved the goal of stabilizing production and ensuring supply, but some farmers have extensively and disorderly hoarded land, which has also caused land waste. The reason for this is that the price of pigs directly determines the willingness to breed, and when prices enter a cyclical downturn, farmers will interrupt construction, even idle or abandon them. In 2022, the No. 1 central document proposed to encourage the development of new breeding facilities such as factory intensive breeding and three-dimensional ecological breeding. Guangdong, Fujian and other places have also realized “building pig breeding”, saving 80%~90% of land. It can be said that the trend of stable production and supply of live pigs in the future, relying on land to tap potential, is significantly greater than the supply of preferential policies.Thirdly, will the land demand for small-scale farmers to develop facility agriculture be given attention?Supporting small farmers to develop facility agriculture is also an important part of the rural revitalization strategy. Since 2018, the No. 1 central document has mentioned the support policies for small farmers in successive years, reflecting the principles of inclusiveness, foundation and bottom-up. Similarly, the new policy not only targets scale operation, but also recognizes the practical difficulties of small farmers, and emphasizes “friendly” and “driving” land use policies. Small farmers engage in sporadic farming in front and behind their own houses, as well as on contracted land, which is not restricted by the new policy. The county-level government is responsible for implementing the annual “bottom line” guarantee. The country is also exploring the feasibility of using remote sensing image data to determine the scope of land use and simplifying the filing process for small-scale and difficult to pay farmers’ scattered aquaculture projects. In this regard, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region has taken the lead by formulating preferential policies such as simplifying filing into ledger management, replacing surveying and mapping with current images or sketch maps, and strictly prohibiting any fees.Fourthly, which investment operators are restricted by current policies?For individual industrial and commercial enterprises and other social capital, violating the principle of “operating agriculture and benefiting farmers”, the disorderly development of “non agricultural” and “non grain” projects through the transfer of arable land remains a key restricted object. Strict restrictions must be imposed through the “tangible hand” of policies, and the entire process of introduction, use, and exit must be supervised. For example, in recent years, the rise of occupying farmland to operate carrier pigeons (carrier pigeons are not meat pigeons, and currently Beijing clearly stipulates that pigeon farms can only raise meat pigeons) for breeding and horse racing has broken the bottom line of “agricultural land use” and become an integrated non agricultural construction project unrelated to facility agricultural land. Construction land approval should be processed.Fifth, how will illegal and irregular land use be handled during the policy adaptation period?In accordance with the principle of “resolutely stopping the increase and prudently disposing of existing land”, there will be “zero tolerance” for the addition of illegal facilities for agricultural use. Serious investigations and punishments will be carried out in accordance with the law and regulations. Those suspected of committing crimes will be promptly transferred to judicial organs for criminal responsibility. For substantive illegal construction activities, strict punishment should also be imposed. For the stock, it will be handled properly and prudently based on the actual situation, and “simplification” or “one size fits all” is not allowed. It is not allowed to forcibly “demolish” it and simply restore it to farmland. For those that have not been stored in the above figure, there is no retroactive effect according to relevant policies and regulations, and there is no situation where they cannot be “replenished” according to the new regulations. Of course, there are situations of inaction, slow action, false action, and disorderly action in some places. From the perspective of the typical cases publicly reported by the natural resources regulatory authorities recently, it has demonstrated the determination of the country to hold it seriously accountable.