Country agriculture profile · East Asia & Pacific
China
China operates one of the world's largest and most intensive agricultural systems, stretching from the tropical far south to the cold northeastern plains and the arid northwest. Irrigated rice dominates the warm, wet south while a winter-wheat and summer-maize rotation anchors the North China Plain, and the country is simultaneously the leading producer of pork and a major grower of cotton, soybean, and horticultural crops. Grain self-sufficiency, protection of cultivated land, and rural revitalisation are enduring pillars of national policy. Numerous smallholder farms coexist with rapid consolidation, mechanisation, and the growth of vertically integrated livestock operations.
Farming systems (stable overview)
Climate zones
- Temperate continental (north and northeast)
- Subtropical monsoon (centre and south)
- Tropical monsoon (far south and Hainan)
- Arid and semi-arid (northwest)
- Alpine cold (Tibetan Plateau)
Agroecological zones
- North China Plain
- Northeast (Songliao) Plain
- Middle and Lower Yangtze basin
- Loess Plateau
- Sichuan Basin
- Southern hills and terraces
Dominant crop systems
- Irrigated paddy rice across the south and the Yangtze basin
- Winter wheat and summer maize double cropping on the North China Plain
- Rainfed spring maize and soybean in the Northeast
- Irrigated cotton in Xinjiang
- Intensive vegetable, orchard, and protected horticulture near cities
Major livestock systems
- Intensive and smallholder pig production
- Large-scale broiler and layer poultry
- Pastoral sheep and goats on northern and western grasslands
- Dairy and beef cattle concentrated in the north
Irrigation: One of the largest irrigated agricultures in the world, combining canal and groundwater irrigation on the North China Plain with paddy systems in the south, under growing water-scarcity pressure across the arid north.
Latest verified data
Each value is the most recent available observation, shown with its own year and unit. Figures are periodically revised — treat them as dated, sourced statistics, not evergreen facts.
| Indicator | Value | Unit | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agricultural land | 55.43 | % of land area | 2023 |
| Arable land | 11.55 | % of land area | 2023 |
| Cereal yield | 6,418.1 | kg per hectare | 2023 |
| Cereal production | 641,731,705.88 | metric tons | 2023 |
| Food production index | 111.75 | index (2014–2016 = 100) | 2022 |
| Livestock production index | 109.5 | index (2014–2016 = 100) | 2022 |
| Agriculture value added | 6.8 | % of GDP | 2024 |
| Employment in agriculture(est.) | 22.22 | % of total employment | 2024 |
Source: World Bank Open Data (World Development Indicators) (opens in a new tab) · dataset version 2026-07-01 · retrieved 2026-07-12
Cereal yield over time
Show data table
| Year | kg per hectare |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 5,828.7 |
| 2013 | 5,897.7 |
| 2014 | 5,896.3 |
| 2015 | 5,985.2 |
| 2016 | 6,018.6 |
| 2017 | 6,110.8 |
| 2018 | 6,122 |
| 2019 | 6,265.1 |
| 2020 | 6,296.1 |
| 2021 | 6,317.5 |
| 2022 | 6,381.3 |
| 2023 | 6,418.1 |
Source: World Bank Open Data (World Development Indicators) (opens in a new tab) · dataset version 2026-07-01 · retrieved 2026-07-12
Derived indicator
Arable land as a share of agricultural land: 20.8 % of agricultural land (2023)
Derived value — formula arable-share-of-agricultural-land v1.0.0 (calc v1). Inputs: AG.LND.ARBL.ZS (11.5) ÷ AG.LND.AGRI.ZS (55.4). A derived ratio, not an observed statistic. Sensitive to rounding and to differing revision cycles of the two source series; omit rather than extrapolate when a common year is unavailable.
Documented crops & livestock
Agricultural institutions
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) — National agriculture, rural policy, and food-security authority.
- Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) — National agricultural research system.
- China Agricultural University (CAU) — Leading agricultural teaching and research university.
Data coverage & limitations
Covered by the World Bank WDI snapshots for land, production, yield, economy, inputs, and environment indicators.
- Statistics are dated, versioned, and periodically revised; always read them with their reference year and dataset version.
- National definitions of cultivated area, farm, and livestock categories differ from those used elsewhere and have changed across successive agricultural censuses.
- Official Chinese agricultural series have historically been subject to revision, and provincial aggregation masks enormous agroecological diversity.
- Some indicators are modeled or estimated where direct reporting is incomplete.
Sources
This article draws on the following authoritative sources. See our sources & methodology for how they are selected.
- Authoritative
Cited for: Agricultural statistics (WDI)
- Type:
- Intergovernmental organization
- Jurisdiction:
- Global
- Accessed:
- 2026-07-12
- [2]FAOSTAT — FAO statistical database (opens in a new tab)Authoritative
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Cited for: Crop and livestock production statistics
- Type:
- Intergovernmental organization
- Jurisdiction:
- Global
- Accessed:
- 2026-07-12
- [3]FAO — Food and Agriculture Organization (opens in a new tab)Authoritative
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Cited for: Production systems and food-security context
- Type:
- Intergovernmental organization
- Jurisdiction:
- Global
- Accessed:
- 2026-07-12