China: Seed Industry Development a High Priority for Leadership

China’s seed industry has improved over the last ten years, but this year gained attention at the highest levels, including as a top priority for President Xi. High-level officials have stressed in remarks over the first half of 2021 that germplasm and breeding are key to China’s agricultural stability and food security. Officials directed provincial and local governments to support improved seed development. With new attention on the planting seed sector coming through high-level meetings and in policy planning documents, there is a noticeable increase in the number of players in the Chinese seed sector. The 2020 administrative measures on foreign investment relaxed restrictions on foreign investment in wheat seed breeding. At the same time, China's hybrid corn and hybrid rice seed production both hit five-year lows in MY2020/21 for varied reasons.