China expects bumper summer harvest, contributing to world food supply

Over a dozen operators drove harvesters in an orderly manner through a vast wheat field in east China’s major breadbasket province Shandong. In just 10 minutes, large areas of golden wheat are reduced to short stubble. “The granaries are already full, yet there’s so much grain that the trucks haven’t finished unloading,” said Guo Bobo, manager of the field and a major grain producer in Wenshang County. Guo’s field reaps a record average yield of 9,750 kg per hectare. Now is the busiest and most rewarding time for farmers like Guo, as China is in its peak summer harvest season, which usually spans from May to late June. Statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs indicated that as of June 15, China had harvested around 310 million mu (around 20.68 million hectares) of winter wheat, with harvest progress surpassing 90 percent. The wheat harvest in southwest China’s Sichuan Province and central China’s Hubei Province, two agricultural powerhouses, has concluded. ...