Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
output has increased by 4.7 per cent per annum, and there has been even
hgher growth in horticultural, livestock and aquatic products (Table 2.1).
Although agricultural growth decelerated after 1985—following the one-off
efficiency gains from de-collectivisation—the country still enjoyed agricultural
growth rates that outpaced the ncrease n populaton (Table 2.1).
Despite the healthy increase in agricultural output, the even faster
growth of the ndustral and servces sectors durng the reform era has
begun to transform the rural economy—from agriculture to industry and from
rural to urban. During this process, the share of agriculture in the national
economy has declined significantly. Whereas agriculture contributed more
than 30 per cent of GDP before 1980, its share fell to 16 per cent in 2000
and to less than 13 per cent in 2005. Meanwhile, the share of services rose
from 13 per cent in 1970 to 40 per cent in 2005 (Table 2.2).
Rapd economc growth and urbansaton have boosted demand for
meats, fruits and other non-staple foods—changes that have stimulated
sharp shifts in the structure of agriculture (Huang and Bouis 1996). For
example, the share of livestock's output value in agriculture more than
doubled from 14 per cent in 1970 to 30 per cent in 2000 (Table 2.2). Aquatic
products rose at an even more rapid rate. One of the most significant signs
of structural change n the agrcultural sector s that the share of crops
in total agricultural output fell from 82 per cent in 1970 to 56 per cent
in 2000, and it has continued to fall since China's WTO accession in 2001.
Moreover, the most significant declines in crop growth rates have been
experenced n the gran sector (Table 2.1).
Changes n the external economy for agrcultural commodtes have
paralleled those n domestc markets. Whereas the share of prmary (manly
agricultural) products in total exports was more than 50 per cent in 1980, it
fell to less than 10 per cent in 2000 (NBSC 1980-2000). In the same period, the
share of food exports n total exports fell from 17 per cent to 5 per cent. The
share of food imports also fell sharply—from 15 per cent to 2 per cent.
Crop-specific trade trends show equally sharp shifts and suggest that
exports are movng ncreasngly towards products n whch Chna has a
comparative advantage (Huang et al. 2007). The net exports of land-intensive
bulk commodities such as grains, cotton, oil seeds and sugar crops have fallen;
exports of higher-valued, more labour-intensive products, such as horticultural
and animal (including aquaculture) products, have risen (Figure 2.1).
