In late March, spring rain misted the fields of Gangzhongping Village, Xiejiapu Town, Dingcheng District, Changde City, Hunan Province. Amid seas of yellow and green rapeseed flowers, rotary tillers worked back and forth, turning the rapeseed plants into soil fertilizer.
"Using these rapeseed plants as green fertilizer after tilling improves rice quality while reducing chemical fertilizer use and costs," said Dai Hong, a large-scale grain grower standing on the field ridge, confidently brushing soil from his hands. "Following expert scientific farming methods ensures our yield and guarantees income growth!"
In March 2024, President Xi Jinping emphasized during his inspection tour of Changde the need to develop high-standard farmland, promote appropriate scale operations, strengthen policy support and demonstration guidance, enhance promotion of improved seeds, machinery, and techniques, refine farming practices, further increase grain yield per unit and quality, enable grain farming to generate wealth, attract more farmers to modern agriculture, and steadily advance agricultural modernization with Chinese characteristics.
As the prefecture-level city with Hunan's largest cultivated area and highest grain output, Changde achieved total grain production of 3.8573 million tons and sowing area of 8.8379 million mu in 2025, maintaining its leading position in Hunan's grain production for 22 consecutive years. How does the "Dongting Granary" comprehensively strengthen its food security foundation? During spring ploughing season, our reporters conducted in-depth research.
Looking back at the 2025 summer harvest, the comprehensive demonstration area for grain production in Fengshu Weiwurzu Huizu Township, Taoyuan County presented a bumper harvest scene.
High-standard farmland now stretches continuously across Gangzhongping Village, with straight mechanized farming roads and crisscrossing irrigation systems showcasing technological advancement. "These widened farm roads allow large machinery direct field access, reducing costs and improving efficiency," said Village Party Secretary Dai Liping with a smile.
This contrasts sharply with the situation a decade ago, when fragmented plots made mechanization difficult. The transformation began in late 2015 with high-standard farmland construction. Initially hesitant about removing field boundaries, villagers became supporters after seeing concrete improvements in irrigation and transportation.
"Core areas consolidated 585 plots into 163, increasing average plot size to 7-8 mu while achieving nearly 100% mechanization and reclaiming over 10 mu of farmland," Dai Liping explained. The construction achieved field regularization, channel connectivity, and road interlinking, complemented by smart agriculture facilities that transmit real-time soil data to farmers' phones.
"Farming has shifted from relying on weather and experience to utilizing data and technology," said Su Shaojun, director of Xiejiapu's Agricultural Service Center. In 2025, the village's double-cropping rice yield reached 1,217.6 kg per mu, becoming true "ton-grain fields."
Dai Hong calculated that his 400 mu of land now yields 1,200 kg per mu for double-cropping rice, generating 660,000 yuan in comprehensive family income last year - double the pre-renovation amount.
Since 2019, Changde has developed over 3 million mu of high-standard farmland with average investment exceeding 3,000 yuan per mu. Through field leveling, irrigation upgrades, and soil improvement projects, grain capacity increased by over 50 kg per mu, transforming rain-fed fields into high-yield land.
The city implements a five-level field management system to prevent illegal land use. Two years ago, farmer Li Minjie in Hanshou County struggled with low yields from compacted soil. After 2025 land improvement projects upgraded soil quality by one grade, his vegetable farming income increased sevenfold through contract farming.
During busy spring ploughing, large-scale grower Luo Ailai from Taoyuan County appears relaxed, preparing for training in Changsha. "The 'Ten Services' system lets me focus on harvesting while professionals handle farming operations," he said.
The innovative "Ten Services" model covers entire production cycles from seedling cultivation to sales and insurance. Luo's cooperative serves nearly 50,000 mu for over 180 large growers, earning national demonstration status. His 1,800 mu of double-cropping rice generates about 400 yuan profit per mu through the service system.
With rural youth population declining, such socialized services address "who will farm" and "how to farm well" challenges. Changde's "Ten Services" now covers 19.45 million mu-times, supported by 600 service organizations and 500 cross-regional machines, achieving over 89.3% rice mechanization with less than 2% harvest loss.
Technical support remains crucial for yield increase. Changde deploys 1,200 agricultural technicians to support large-scale growers, ensuring technology implementation. This facilitates appropriate scale operations, with 60.82% land transfer rate, 30,884 family farms, and 9,511 cooperatives achieving cost reduction through scale.
For premium grain marketing, Changde developed deep processing solutions. At Xinsanxiang Rice Noodle Industrial Park, 18 production lines transform early indica rice into fresh noodles through 20 processes. "Deep processing multiplies value addition," said Vice President Xu Hongfang. The company partners with 50,000 mu of dedicated early rice bases, guaranteeing sales for farmers.
"Contracts are signed before harvest, eliminating marketing worries," Dai Hong confirmed, noting his 400 mu early rice fetched 0.2 yuan/kg premium in 2025, adding 60,000 yuan income.
Jiaxian Food Technology developed fresh-keeping technology extending shelf life to 12 months without additives, enabling Changde rice noodles to expand globally. This demand drives specialized early rice planting, with late season premium rice cultivation.
The "early specialty, late premium" model thrives in demonstration areas. Chen Shuaiyu's cooperative implements unified standards across 5,400 mu served area, supplying Xinsanxiang at 0.2 yuan/kg premium. His "Huajian Dao" brand achieved 50 million yuan sales last year, distributing 200,000 yuan dividends.
The "Changde Fragrant Rice" geographical indication brand, established in 2018, operates under government-supervised quality traceability systems. "We want farmers to taste brand benefits," said Yang Huan from Changde Grain Association. Under contract farming, authorized enterprises processed 42,000 tons of fragrant rice in 2025, generating 300 yuan/mu additional income through brand premium.
"Changde established full traceability systems ensuring every grain's safety from field to table," said agricultural department officials. The grain processing industry now values 62.6 billion yuan, completing the field-to-dining table chain.
From quality planting to premium marketing, from selling grain to selling brands, rice grains gain value through entire industrial chains, enriching farmers in the "Dongting Granary." The dream of "growing grain for prosperity" is becoming reality.
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