‘China didn’t hoard grains’: stockpiling to ensure domestic food security has global implications

As food prices rise globally and war rages between two of the world’s biggest grain suppliers, Beijing is intent on securing an adequate food supply for the most populous country

But some Western critics are accusing China of contributing to global inflation and regional shortages of foodstuffs

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China’s stockpile of wheat accounts for about half of the world’s supply, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

Published: 5:00am, 11 Apr 2022

As China imports record levels of grain every year, an oft-repeated vow by President Xi Jinping is given greater impetus: “The Chinese people’s rice bowl must be firmly held in their own hands.”

But China’s amassing of grain stockpiles has sparked allegations by some Western critics who say such a mentality has contributed to rising food prices globally amid the prolonged pandemic and now war between two of the world’s biggest grain suppliers – Russia and Ukraine.

Many analysts point to China’s grim history of hunger and poverty to explain the unprecedented emphasis Beijing has been placing on food security, and some say it is a prudent choice in the face of extreme weather, shipping disruptions, sanctions and conflicts that have globe-spanning implications.

Others contend that China should not be held responsible for global price hikes or regional shortages, and that it should focus on improving domestic production and making structural changes to the industry to ensure that the world’s biggest population has enough foodstuffs on hand.

“China didn’t hoard grains,” said Yu Chunhai, deputy dean of Renmin University’s School of Economics. “The imports were just used to meet the domestic supply gap.”

The world’s second-largest economy is at a disadvantage because it lacks international price-setting power, and international prices have been mainly driven up due to supply issues.

“If China can successfully improve domestic production through a variety of policies, that would be its biggest contribution to the stability of global grain prices,” Yu added.