Industrial encroachment causes China to cancel reforestation, fearing food shortage

In China, the national government has suspended a program to reforest marginal lands because of increasing concerns over food production. Deputy head of the ministry of land and resources, Lu Xinshe, was quoted in the Guardian saying that industrialization is causing the country to struggle to maintain a minimum 120 million hectares needed for food security. As of last year, the arable land in China had fallen to within 1 percent of the 120 million hectare “red line”.

Although Chinese companies have purchased land for food and energy production throughout Africa, Southeast Asia and the former Russian republics, the Chinese cancelled a planned reforestation project to maintain a target of 500 million tonnes of grain per year.

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