Rules to balance farmland protections, food security

China has issued new measures to manage the red lines for the protection of permanent basic farmland, aiming to balance the rigidity of farmland protection with the flexibility required for agricultural production to ensure national food security.

The 27-item measures, jointly released by the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, will take effect on Oct 1.

The measures have set regulations for institutional arrangements to optimize land use, allow necessary adjustments and grant local authorities a degree of autonomy, with the fundamental goal of protecting at least 103 million hectares as outlined in this round of national land spatial planning.

"Farmland protection requires a systematic approach that necessitates a holistic consideration of security and development, as well as quantity and quality," said He Yong, director of the farmland protection and supervision department at the Ministry of Natural Resources.

"However, practice has shown that the current management system for permanent basic farmland is overly rigid and lacks sufficient flexibility," He said. Permanent basic farmland in some areas suffers from unreasonable delineation, fragmentation and subpar quality, he added.

Existing laws and regulations lack adjustment mechanisms, making it difficult to meet the practical needs of farmland protection while also fostering agricultural economic development, said the director.

To address these problems and create large, contiguous tracts of high-quality arable land, the measures — for the first time at the departmental regulation level — have established a reserve zone system for permanent basic farmland.

The system will serve as the primary source for compensatory demarcation in efforts to optimize and adjust the protection red line, as well as in cases where major construction projects encroach on permanent basic farmland.

High-quality arable land that can be stably used over the long term should be prioritized for inclusion in the reserve zone, the measures say. This includes newly added farmland from land consolidation, established high-standard plots, and land contiguous with existing permanent basic farmland. It also covers superior-quality farmland with slopes under 15 degrees, farmland with favorable water and soil resources, and farmland reclaimed from other agricultural uses such as orchards and woodlands.

Provincial natural resource departments, working with agricultural and rural departments, must regularly assess and determine the targets for delineating reserve zones at the city and county levels. These targets should be dynamically adjusted based on actual conditions.

The measures also specify conditions for adjusting the permanent basic farmland red line, allowing for cases such as high-standard farmland construction, land consolidation and the development of facilities for collective economic organizations. These adjustments are required to meet urgent local needs and support both protection and production.

Local authorities may make annual adjustments to the layout of permanent basic farmland while upholding overall protection goals. Based on national land spatial planning assessments, they can eliminate plots that are unreasonably designated or unsuitable for long-term use and incorporate new high-quality farmland.

In accordance with the Land Administration Law, the measures outline guidelines for key construction projects that may occupy permanent basic farmland.

These include projects for in situ site protection approved by the State Council, China's Cabinet, as well as major infrastructure projects approved within national land spatial planning such as airports, railways, highways, water transport, and energy and water conservancy facilities.