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Sanya's efforts in soybean farming yield progress

Print CGTN Updated: 2021-07-19


China has been seeing results in experiments with soybean cultivation in its southern city of Sanya in hopes of developing new varieties for countries along the Belt and Road in Southeast Asia.

A total of one hectare of soybeans have been planted in the Batou Nanfan Public Experimental Base in Sanya city, Hainan province. This is the first large-scale attempt at trialling the planting of soybeans in Hainan.

The tropical climate of Sanya offers superb natural conditions for soybeans to grow. Generally, the soybean's reaping time from planting to harvest takes 110 days.

After more than 70 days of meticulous management, one hectare of soybeans are already experiencing a harvest with a yield of over 16.675 kilograms per hectare, far exceeding China's average yield of more than 9 kilograms per hectare.

Dr. Liu Fangdong from National Soybean Improvement Center Nanjing Agricultural University said, "Through rapid breeding, we hope to develop several soybean varieties suitable for planting in the Southeast Asian 'Belt and Road' countries to benefit the farmers there and create a new source of soybean imports for China."

Liu says the yield per hectare in the southern soybean production testing area is generally 12 to 13.34 kilograms, while in Huanghuai it's 13.34 to 15 kilos. That's compared with the average output of 16 kilos per hectare in the United States for 2020, while in Brazil it was roughly 15.6 kilos.

As one of China's key food crops, annual demand is about 110 million tons, over 90 percent of which needs to be imported.

With the success of the efforts, experts say the soybean industry in Hainan will add extra strength to overall production and supply all year round.



The breeding base of tropical soybean varieties in Sanya. [Photo/Sanya  Daily]

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