Focusing on agriculture, the recently published 15th Five-Year Plan offers strategic insights for Dutch companies to engage with Chinese partners, for example in smart agriculture and resource-efficient production. The plan lays out China’s priorities towards integrated, data-driven production. China’s leading motive is to produce more and higher-quality food under tightening constraints on land, water and environmental resources.
China’s 15th Five-Year Plan signals a clear shift towards modern, efficient and technology-driven agricultural development. Compared with previous planning periods, the 15th Five-Year Plan places stronger emphasis on productivity, efficiency, quality, resilience and full value-chain development. This shift reflects China’s growing need to produce more and higher-quality food under tightening constraints on land, water and environmental resources.
Dutch Greenhouse Project in Gansu Province China
For the Netherlands, the plan creates opportunities to contribute expertise, knowledge and practical applications in areas such as smart agriculture, seed innovation, value-chain upgrading, resource-efficient production, and sustainable agriculture.
China’s priorities in agricultural sector development for the next five years can de synthesised under three headings.
Strengthening food security and agricultural production
Food security remains the foundation of China’s agricultural policy. The plan increasingly focuses on stable, high-quality and efficient production systems. During the 15th Five-Year period China aims to:
- Ensure and improve grain production, and stabilise supply capability.
- Strengthen farmland protection and ensure the stability of the total arable land area.
- Promote the utilisation of saline-alkali land and the expansion of suitable non-arable land resources.
- Diversify food supply, and expand forestry and grassland-based agriculture.
Integrating modern industrial agriculture practices
The 15th Five-Year Plan positions agriculture as a modern industrial system rather than a stand-alone primary sector. This approach emphasises deeper integration of production, processing, distribution and consumption, with the following key directions:
- Upgrade the entire agricultural value chain, including post-harvest handling, processing, storage and cold chain logistics.
- Enhance value creation through improved varieties, standardised production and brand development.
Upgrading agricultural technology and smart agriculture
Technological upgrading is central to agricultural development during the 15th Five-Year period. China is moving rapidly towards integrated, data-driven production systems, prioritising efforts to:
- Strengthen seed innovation and self-reliance by promoting the integrated development of improved varieties, advanced cultivation practices, and appropriate machinery.
- Expand smart agriculture, including the application of artificial intelligence, machinery and equipment, big data, sensors and automated systems in production management.
- Promote system-based technological solutions that improve technology adoption rates and operational efficiency.
More information
With the broad strategic guidance of the Five-Year Plan, all relevant government departments and agencies at national and sub-national levels will work to align their policy initiatives accordingly. For agriculture, the No.1 Central Document is one of the first policy initiatives to look out for, providing recommendations for implementation in daily practice. The China Agriculture Network will provide further updates honing in on relevance for Dutch companies.
For questions, please contact us at pek-lvvn@minbuza.nl