2009-07-0 1 China Reform Forum
June 23, Changzhou, Jiangsu.
The sun is like fire, and you will sweat profusely if you stand outside for a while. However, in the packaging workshop of Jiangsu Wan Defu Agricultural Science and Technology Development Co., Ltd., it is extremely cold because of the opening of refrigeration equipment, just like the temperature in the heart of Huang Jianqing, the chairman of this company.
This is an enterprise specializing in exporting quick-frozen fruits and vegetables. Through contract farming, it organizes farmers around to plant blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and other fruits and vegetables, and exports them to Europe after quick freezing. In 2006, exporting a ton of blackberries brought 6,000 yuan of profits to enterprises, but the international financial crisis that is still spreading almost swept away all these profits, and also brought a large inventory backlog and the pain of losing 600-900 yuan per ton of blackberries exported. In the face of plummeting prices, Huang Jianqing only gritted his teeth to keep the market.
What impact has the international financial crisis brought to China's agriculture? Huang Jianqing's experience vividly illustrates this point. Under the background of globalization, although the vast countryside is a bit remote, it still can't stop the spread of the crisis.
According to insiders, the global financial crisis and economic downturn will affect China's agricultural sector through international agricultural trade, international capital flow, agricultural futures, and mergers and acquisitions of agricultural multinational companies. With China becoming the fourth largest importer and fifth largest exporter of agricultural products in the world, the dependence of agriculture on foreign countries has increased, and the changes in the international agricultural products market will quickly spread to China. The shrinking international demand for agricultural products has made it more difficult for China to export agricultural products. Some small and medium-sized enterprises have difficulties in operation or closed down, and their salaries have been reduced or laid off, which has seriously affected the employment and income increase of migrant workers; Affected by the financial crisis, the price of international agricultural products has fallen, which has brought downward pressure on China to maintain a reasonable price level of agricultural products.
From 1 to April this year, China's total agricultural exports 1 162 billion US dollars, down 9.3% year-on-year. The export of agricultural products in many provinces across the country has seen a situation of "both quantity and price falling".
According to experts' analysis, compared with the end of last year, the impact of the international financial crisis on China's agricultural and rural economy has spread from the field of market circulation to the field of production and processing, from exporting agricultural products to the whole field of agricultural products, and the market risks and pressures borne by agriculture and farmers are increasing.
The international financial crisis has also caused the rise of trade protectionism in many countries, and some countries have set up various new trade barriers to imported agricultural products. According to the investigation of the Ministry of Commerce, 90% of China's agricultural products and food export enterprises are affected by foreign technical barriers to trade, and lose about $9 billion every year. Technical barriers to trade implemented abroad have become the biggest obstacle to the export of agricultural products in China.
Faced with the impact of the international financial crisis, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council promptly launched a package plan to promote steady and rapid economic development. With the gradual implementation of various policies and measures, the national economy shows signs of recovery. However, at present and in the future, the impact of the international financial crisis will continue to spread, and China's agriculture is facing more severe challenges than before.
In order to effectively cope with the impact of the international financial crisis, we must strengthen the agricultural foundation.
The ups and downs of pig price and meat price also test Shuanghui Group, the largest meat processing enterprise in China. However, in the face of the deepening crisis, Shuanghui achieved double-digit growth in production and sales scale, profits and taxes from June to May this year. What prompted it to actively adjust its breeding, meat processing and product structure; Strengthen specialized procurement, strict inspection and quarantine to ensure food safety; Perfecting the industrial chain and enhancing the industrial agglomeration effect have become the magic weapon for Shuanghui to resolve the crisis challenge.
Many leading enterprises in agricultural industrialization, like Shuanghui, are facing crisis challenges. While strengthening their ability to resist risks, they actively stabilize the production of agricultural products and drive farmers to increase their income.
The international financial crisis has had a comprehensive and profound impact on China's agriculture and rural economy. To effectively deal with the current financial crisis, we must strengthen the agricultural foundation. To strengthen the agricultural foundation, we must first stabilize the prices of agricultural products, especially grain production.
In order to stabilize grain production, a series of policies for benefiting farmers with high gold content have been introduced one after another:
Raise the minimum purchase price. Last June, 5438+ 10, the state explicitly proposed to substantially increase the minimum purchase price of grain in 2009. Among them, the minimum purchase price per kilogram of white wheat, red wheat and mixed wheat increased by 13%, 15.3% and 15.3% respectively compared with this year. At the beginning of this year, it was proposed to continue to implement the minimum purchase price policy in the main rice producing areas and substantially raise the minimum purchase price level. In 2009, the minimum purchase prices of early indica rice (third grade, the same below), mid-late indica rice and japonica rice were increased to 90 yuan, 92 yuan and 95 yuan respectively, which was 13 yuan higher than that in 2008.
Increase subsidies. In 2009, the central financial fund for supporting agriculture increased by 20.2% over the previous year, reaching 71.61.40 billion yuan. Among them, the "four subsidies" such as direct grain subsidies, comprehensive subsidies for agricultural materials, subsidies for improved varieties and subsidies for the purchase of agricultural machinery and tools totaled 654.38+02.308 billion yuan, an increase of 654.38+09.4% over the previous year.
Stabilize and expand agricultural products exports. From June 2009 1, the export tax rebate rate of deep-processed agricultural products such as canned food, fruit juice and mulberry silk was increased to15%; The export tax rebate rate for corn starch and alcohol is raised to 5%. /kloc-From July, 2000, the state cancelled the provisional tariffs on the export of wheat, rice and soybeans, and decided to continue to reduce or exempt the entry-exit inspection and quarantine fees for exported agricultural products in 2009. The government's efforts to solve the adverse effects of the financial crisis on China's agriculture are conducive to promoting exports and stabilizing the prices of agricultural products.
Credit funds actively support agricultural production. Agricultural Bank and Agricultural Development Bank actively provide credit funds to support spring ploughing production, leading enterprises in agricultural industrialization and agricultural infrastructure construction. Since the beginning of this year, the Agricultural Bank of China has focused on supporting farmland water conservancy capital construction and rural infrastructure construction, and has issued a total of 240.7 billion yuan in loans to support projects such as spring ploughing and drought relief, rural drinking water safety, water-saving renovation of irrigation areas, development of clean energy industry, and comprehensive river regulation. At present, there are 299 national key leading enterprises and 208 provincial key leading enterprises supported by agricultural development bank loans.
Industrialized management to enhance the comprehensive competitiveness of agricultural products is the fundamental way out for farmers to increase their income.
Fang Siqing, 44, is from Li Lou Village, laohekou city, Hubei. Rice and corn are grown on 8 mu of land at home. Last year, their village signed a planting order with Hubei Aoxing Grain and Oil Company. Not only seeds, pesticides and fertilizers are provided by the company, but also rice is purchased at a price higher than the market price per catty 1 cent. This not only made Laos taste the sweetness of contract farming, but also envied the villagers in other surrounding villages.
Experts' interpretation of this is that the biggest feature of agricultural industrialization management is that from policy requirements to institutional arrangements, leading enterprises and farmers are required to establish a relatively close interest linkage mechanism, forming an economic interest * * *, risk * * *, mutual benefit and win-win situation.
Facing the impact of the international financial crisis, leading enterprises and farmers' specialized cooperative economic organizations not only greatly reduced farmers' business risks, but also ensured farmers' benefits through order contracts. The data shows that in 2008, the purchasing value of raw materials of leading enterprises reached 1.56 trillion yuan, which made an important contribution to ensuring farmers' agricultural productive income. By the end of 2008, agricultural industrialization organizations had driven 98.08 million farmers, and the average annual income of farmers who participated in industrial management increased by more than 1.70 million yuan; The leading enterprise 1.24 million that has obtained the "three products" certification of pollution-free agricultural products, green food and organic agricultural products, covering more than 9,600 products.
In the long run, vigorously developing agricultural industrialization will not only help to improve the degree of agricultural organization and stabilize farmers' expectations of productive income, but also help to build a modern agricultural industrial system, form the cost advantage of agricultural products, ensure the quality and safety of agricultural products, and further enhance the comprehensive competitiveness of agricultural products in China.
In order to promote the development of agricultural industrialization, the state has introduced a series of policies and measures in finance, taxation, finance and export. According to the policy, the special fund for agricultural industrialization will support leading enterprises to carry out base construction and technical equipment transformation; The primary processing and deep processing of agricultural products will enjoy income tax relief and export tax rebate respectively; Financial institutions will give support to leading enterprises in terms of loan extension, loan renewal and project grace period.
However, it is doubtful whether these policies have been well implemented. A few days ago, at the symposium on promoting agricultural industrialization and increasing farmers' income jointly held by the Agricultural Industrialization Office of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Economic Department of People's Daily, Zhou Wenyi, deputy director of the Inner Mongolia Agriculture Department, called on leading enterprises to link the three most active factors of urban and rural areas, industrial agriculture and production and consumption. Supporting enterprises means helping farmers. Representatives of some leading enterprises suggested that financial departments at all levels should greatly increase the special funds for agricultural industrialization and explore new modes of financial funds to support the development of agricultural industrialization. Improve the tax support policy for the development of agricultural products processing industry and expand the scope of application of preferential tax policies for primary processing of agricultural products; Increase the scale of credit to leading enterprises and give preferential interest rates; The production electricity price of leading enterprises shall be given preferential treatment with reference to the agricultural production electricity price.
The current international financial crisis is a severe test, forcing enterprises, farmers and the government to think, adjust and improve. China is short of land and water resources per capita, and its agricultural base is weak. Under the background of economic globalization, to enhance the comprehensive competitiveness of agricultural products, we must take the road of modern agriculture with China characteristics. This is destined to be a road to make more efforts, overcome greater difficulties and invest more innovative power.