Innovations in Agricultural Technologies in China

China’s agriculture has experienced a rapid transformation since the initiation of the economic policy reforms in 1978. China’s crop economy has steadily shifted from “grain first” to production of higher-value cash and horticultural crops. This chapter documents major innovative technologies that have significantly increased agricultural production in the past and the promising new technologies that may affect China’s agricultural productivity growth in the future. The chapter focuses on the grain sector where the Green Revolution and modern breeding have started since the 1960s. It presents the major innovations in cash crops with a focus on cotton and horticulture as well as innovations in the livestock and fishery sectors, particularly in breeding technologies that have substantially raised animal production in China. It also highlights technological innovations in agricultural inputs, including irrigation, production and uses of chemical fertilizers and farm machineries. It is worth noting that without innovations in agricultural inputs, modern seed varieties and other innovative farming technologies would not have significantly increased the production levels of hundreds of millions of small farmers in China. The chapter also introduces some innovative farm practices that can facilitate sustainable and high-value agriculture, including both vertical (e.g. integrated crop–livestock production) and horizontal (e.g. rice–fish or shrimp culture) agricultural production systems that help farmers to raise their income. Promising new technologies such as information and communication technology (ICT) and big data technologies that may significantly change agricultural production in the future are also highlighted in this chapter.