In today’s talking points: Australia resumes beef exports to China; Mildura citrus grower establishes new Australian citrus export market in China; Draft revision to Rural Land Contract Law aims to provide farmers with long-term stability; Agricultural tourism projects in Guiyang improve incomes of 150,000 farmers
Australia resumes beef exports to China
Three months after China banned Australian beef exports due to mislabeling, trade officials have re-established exports. With the ban now lifted, a third of Australia’s beef exports will recommence. China is Australia’s fourth largest export market for beef and the market was valued at over $670 million in 2016. Trade Minister Steven Ciobo said the lifting of the ban was “terrific news.”
Read more at: Sydney Morning Herald
Mildura citrus grower establishes new Australian citrus export market in China
Tania Chapman, a citrus grower from Mildura, Victoria, and chair of Citrus Australia, has forged a new export for Australian citrus in China. In 2014 Mrs Chapman received the Nuffield Scholarship, which allowed her to conduct market research and consequently establish an export market that resulted in 40,000 tonnes of Australian citrus being sent to China last season at premium rates. Mrs Chapman also encouraged other business owners to “take time out to learn and to share the learnings.”
Read more at: Queensland Country Life
Draft revision to Rural Land Contract Law aims to provide farmers with long-term stability
During the recent 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Xi Jinping outlined plans to improve the land management system in rural areas. These plans proposed to reform the system by separating ownership rights, contract rights, and management rights for contracted rural land. Following on from this, a draft revision of the Rural Land Contract Law was submitted to the congress with the aim of extending the current rural land contracts by thirty years, thus allowing a more stable future for farmers to plan long-term.
Read more at: China Daily
Agricultural tourism projects in Guiyang improve the incomes of 150,000 farmers
Guiyang, in Guizhou Province, has created agricultural tourism projects with the purpose of improving the living and economic situations of farmers by providing them with an additional income. The results of these projects can be seen in Guiyangs rural tourism revenue of 9,503 million yuan in 2015, which directly benefitted 150,000 farmers. One of these farmers, Wang Xianchao, developed his own ‘agritainment’ business that earned 90,000 yuan in October’s National holiday, which was almost as much as his total annual income before 2014.
Read more at: China Daily