The priorities were announced during a press conference on January 22 by Zhang Xingwang, Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.
“2026 is the first year of the 15th Five-Year Plan. Performing well in agriculture, rural areas, and farmers’ work is crucial,” said Zhang.
The ministry aimed to ensure the stability of production and supply of grain and other key agricultural products by improving both output capacity and quality.
Efforts will focus on expanding green agricultural products, safeguarding food security, and building more diversified agricultural supply systems.
Strengthening self-reliance in agricultural science and technology will be another key focus.
MARA plans to promote more organised research and development, accelerate breakthroughs in seed breeding, agricultural machinery and smart agriculture, and deepen the integration of scientific research with industrial application.
Finally, Zhang said the ministry would aim to consolidate poverty alleviation gains, promote rural income growth, building liveable and business-friendly rural areas to deepen rural reforms.
To support income growth, Zhang said it will continue to develop rural industries and improve mechanisms to ensure farmers benefit fairly from industrial value chains.
Other measures include expanding the pilot programme to extend second-round rural land contracts by 30 years, strengthening land management, developing rural collective economies and accelerating the training of skilled rural talent.
Building on big achievements
China’s agricultural and rural sector delivered steady growth in 2025, meeting all annual targets and completing its objectives.
“Agricultural and rural development maintained a stable and positive momentum, achieving all annual and 14th Five-Year Plan targets, providing a solid foundation for high-quality economic and social development,” said Zhang.
Despite regional droughts, floods and prolonged rainfall, grain production reached a new record. Total grain output rose by 8.4 million tonnes year-on-year to 714.9 million tonnes.
Soybean and oil crop expansion continued, with soybean output reaching 20.91 million tonnes.
Data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that pork, beef, mutton and poultry output reached 100.72 million tonnes in 2025, up 4.2 per cent year-on-year.
Collectively, the nation reached a 98 per cent pass rate for agricultural product quality and safety.
Breakthroughs were achieved in key agricultural technologies with more than 95 per cent of crop planting areas used domestically bred varieties.
In 2025, around 5.05 million hectares of high-standard farmland were newly built or upgraded.
Mechanisation of crop cultivation and harvesting reached 76.7 per cent, while smart agriculture expanded across the production chain.
Ownership of agricultural drones exceeded 300,000 units, covering more than 30.7 million hectares annually.
Green agricultural practices, including livestock manure and straw recycling, also advanced.
Additionally, China advanced its rural reforms by increasing the disposal income of rural residents by 6 per cent in real terms.
It also expanded a pilot program to extend rural land contracts by 30 year, covering more than 25 million households over seven provinces.
Poverty alleviation measures recorded the “stabilisation” of more than seven million households.
Employment and industrial support helped secure jobs for over 32 million rural workers.
