China imported over 10-million tons of wheat, corn and rice during the first 10 months.

 

　　That almost doubled the number in the same period last year.

 

　　Bi Meijia, chief economist and spokesperson for the Ministry of Agriculture, is attributing the surge to consumers' diversified demand:

 

　　"People's buying power is getting stronger, so is their demand to different kinds of grain products, particularly a stronger preference for high-quality imported rice and wheat. Also corn, an ingredient for animal feed and an important industrial raw material, also faces tightening supply as the farming and deep processing industries develop."

 

　　Bi Meijia also says China is still capable of realizing self-reliance when it comes to major grains.

 

　　"According to our statistics, imports of the three products, which counted for less than 2 percent of their domestic outputs, will not threaten the country's grain security and the goal of achieving a balanced aggregate supply."

 

　　China's grain output rose 3.2 percent year on year in 2012, marking the ninth consecutive year of growth.

 

　　But, agricultural authorities also admit it is increasingly difficult for China to further expand its farm land.

 

　　This suggests the country has to rely on new technologies to increase grain output.