Country overview
China is a vast country which has made great strides in feeding its population of 1.39 billion people on only 7% of the world’s arable land. At the same time, China faces enormous environmental challenges related to food production, such as vulnerability to climate change, declining arable land area, growing levels of water scarcity and water pollution, widespread soil degradation and soil pollution.
Close to 11% of China’s population is now diabetic and 12% obese. Furthermore, China consumes 28% of the global supply of meat including half of its pork. Food loss and waste is also a significant problem in China – consumers in big Chinese cities alone waste enough food to feed 30-50 million people.
Agriculture contributes to 7.2% of China’s GDP with total agricultural imports of about $137 billion and exports of about $80 billion. As the largest agricultural market in the world, China has major impacts on other countries. China is the world’s largest importer of soy and logs and the second largest importer of beef, palm oil and lumber, all commodities that are key drivers of deforestation.
At the same time, there is growing awareness among Chinese companies of the need to improve the sustainability of agricultural supply chains. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health aims to reduce meat consumption through the use of dietary guidelines and other measures. China has also made significant progress on afforestation and ecological redlining to protect critical habitats as well as taken steps to reform agricultural subsidies. Indeed, China has made great strides in many areas but much more can be done to transform unsustainable food and land use systems in the country.
To learn more about China: Read our global report or the China country pages
Read Chinese summary of the Growing Better report here
Read Chinese full version of the Growing Better report here
Read about the China launch of the Growing Better report here
Explore FOLU Ambassador Shenggen Fan’s new academy with focus on China’s food systems and policy here.
FOLU in China
In China, a national FOLU platform has been established to support domestic and international approaches that strengthen ecological protection, alongside improved health, sustainability and rural prosperity. The national platform seeks to strengthen the evidence base for action, and to support efforts in China to ensure responsible commodity sourcing. It also provides a bridge to the larger FOLU network, enabling China to share its rich development experience and knowledge with other countries. Core partners in the platform include WRI China, China Agricultural University and Tsinghua University, as well as FABLE Consortium members which include the Center for Agricultural Resources Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University, and Peking University. These FABLE members carry out a crucial component of the FOLU work in China, which is to support the development of the data and modelling infrastructure needed to produce long-term FABLE pathways towards sustainable food and land-use systems.
FABLE in China
Participating institution: Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CARR, IGDB, CAS);
Team members: Zhaohai Bai (CARR, IGDB, CAS), Xinpeng Jin (CARR, IGDB, CAS), Lin Ma (CARR, IGDB, CAS), Hao Zhao (CARR, IGDB, CAS)
Publications: 2019 Report of the FABLE Consortium. Pathway for China.
Related news & resources
This independent dialogue brings together multiple participants from the food supply chain in China. Stakeholders will communicate, share their experiences of food systems, propose ways of building a more sustainable food system and explore opportunities for different forms of collaboration.