Strategies for Agriculture to Cope with Climate Change

In 2011 the COA promoted a number of measures to deal with the climate change issue, including: (a) increasing the efficiency of how water resources are used by promoting the use of spray irrigation for upland crops covering 2039 hectares; (b) planting an additional 200,000 trees in green buffer belts, capable of absorbing 2000 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year; (c) constructing 68 artificial reefs, totaling about 100,000 square meters of manmade habitat, as well as releasing about 10 million fish fry, in response to changes in the marine environment and habitat; (d) completing new or follow-up surveys of waterways with potential for debris flow in 457 locations, surveying major debris-flow incidents in 77 locations, and revising the model for evaluating the risk of debris-flow incidents; (e) establishing 300 demonstration points for teaching more appropriate use of fertilizers, and promoting the use of domestically produced organic fertilizer (affecting 20,089 hectares of land).

We have also strengthened scientific and technological R&D to raise the capability of the agricultural sector to cope with adverse developments. The COA’s agricultural experimental and improvement stations have developed 10 varieties of wet-paddy rice, three varieties of grains, and six varieties of fruits or vegetables that are resistant to adverse environmental changes, pests, or diseases. We have also guided farm operators in the rational and correct use of agricultural production inputs, implementing a strategy based on balance between, on one hand, conserving and protecting agricultural assets and the environment, and, on the other, promoting the development of the agricultural sector of the economy.

The National Food Security Conference

Given global climate change and rising international prices of raw materials, there is increasing concern worldwide about the issue of food security. To work out strategies to maintain stable supplies and prices of food in Taiwan, on May 10-11 2011 the COA convened the National Food Security Conference. Fourteen core strategies and 55 corollary measures were approved. The main ones include:

(a) Raising the food self-sufficiency ratio by increasing both production and consumption of domestic food supplies, with a target of 40% self-sufficiency set for 2020; (b) Securing sources of food imports, strengthening international investment and joint ventures in agriculture, and building a borderless food security network; (c) Creating a graded food security management system, ensuring reserves of food, and building a storage mechanism; (d) Increasing the efficiency of the use of both land and water in agriculture, and preserving the land and water resources needed for production of superior grade foods.

A storage mechanism for food security

The standard for food security for rice in Taiwan has been set at three months consumption, equivalent to 300,000 metric tons, with market share of 25%. This is higher than the 17-18% recommended by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, as well as higher than the figures for Japan (11.8%) and Korea (16.7%). On March 7 of 2011 the COA convened the second meeting of the Food Security Task Force (a multi-ministerial body), at which a resolution was adopted that at the end of May of each year, when domestic rice stores are at their lowest, the amount of rice held in public storage for purposes of food security should not be lower that 400,000 metric tons of unpolished rice. At the end of May of 2011, the actual figure was 420,000 metric tons, thereby fulfilling the target.

The ROC has also been a strong advocate of the creation of an APEC food emergency response mechanism. In August of 2011 Taiwan hosted the APEC Food Security Forum, and those in attendance agreed that such a mechanism would be helpful to achieving the goal of maintaining regional food security. Attendees also expressed support for further efforts by Taiwan to research and analyze the costs and benefits of such a mechanism and evaluate its social and economic impact, in order to move toward concrete plans for its creation.

Promoting and expanding the Small Landlords, Big Tenants program

By the end of 2011, the total area of land operated under the Small Landlords, Big Tenants program reached 8433 hectares, or 112% of the target figure. The cumulative number of landlords in the program reached 13,912, and the cumulative number of tenants was 1002. Tenants in the program were an average age of 42, well below the average age of all farmers in Taiwan (63), and they managed an average of 8.4 hectares of land each (including their own), or seven times higher than the amount of land managed by the average farm household in Taiwan (1.1 hectares). It is clear that this program is making real progress toward achieving the goals of rejuvenating the rural labor force and increasing the scale of farm operations.

The COA also aims to guide large-tenant operations toward a more corporate-style business model. We have provided advice to this purpose in 185 cases, helping large tenants to upgrade production and marketing equipment, lower manpower costs, and increase operational efficiency. We are also encouraging farmers to do more greenhouse cultivation to upgrade the quality of fruits, vegetables, and flowers that they grow, as well as to reduce damage and losses from natural disasters or unfavorable weather, which will also contribute to stabilizing the balance of supply and demand in the market.

Bringing fallow land back under cultivationTo ensure the stability of food supply and prices in Taiwan in the face of global warming and rising international prices for food, and taking into account trends in supply and demand for food both domestically and worldwide, the COA is promoting a program to bring fallow land back under cultivation. Under this program, which is linked to the Small Landlords, Big Tenants policy, we encourage farmers to lease out land that has gone continuously unused to professional farmers who intend to bring the land back under cultivation. We have incentives in place for putting the land to uses that meet domestic needs, such as growing rice, feed corn, or organic crops; pasture; and afforestation. This program will raise food self-sufficiency, increase the scale of farming operations, raise management efficiency, and support rural incomes.

In 2011 the policy was implemented on 73,000 hectares of land, an increase of 19,000 over the figure for 2010 (54,000 hectares), meaning that the policy has had a marked effect.