China’s falling agricultural productivity has raised concerns about the affordability and safety of China’s food. China has began importing foods such as rice which are deemed to toxic and too expensive when grown in China. Toxic run off from heavy metal mining and processing has destroyed farmland while the demand for food has increased in the ever-expanding urban regions.
China’s government has made it one of their top priorities to try to fix China’s 
farms. China has already seen that many young people have migrated off of farms and into more urban areas in search of higher paying jobs. To alleviate this, China will expand its policy of providing direct subsidies to farmers. China’s Development Bank also plans on increasing mid- and long-term infastructure loans to rural areas. In addition, China is planning on building more infrastructure in rural areas by laying water pipes, upgrading existing power grids, and constructing networks for alternative energy (wind and solar).
By modernizing farms, China can make sure that the productivity per acre of farmland is increased and the safety of the foods increases as well. This will keep food prices low and also decrease the amount of food that must be imported into the country.
Sources:
Reuters. “China to Tackle Food Safety as Policy Priority: Xinhua.” Reuters. Thomson Reuters, 01 Feb. 2015. Web. 02 Feb. 2015.
Ghallagher, Sean. Rice Farmer. Digital image. National Geographic News. National Geographic, 26 Apr. 2011. Web. 2 Feb. 2015.
It will be interesting to see if an increase in farm equipment is seen in China’s rural areas. With decreased production (in both quantity and quality), and a large migration of Chinese youth from rural to urban areas, it seems as though an increase in farming technology will be necessary.
1. You may not be using “productivity” accurately – do you mean production (output), output per farmer-hour or output per land area? Is it really falling?
2. Should the Chinese government be encouraging peasants to stay on the land or to move to the cities?
3. In what does China have comparative advantage? Isn’t Foxconn a great farm machine – take workers and computer chips in at one end, turn it into soybeans via iPhone exports at the other?
Comment on the Prof’s second question:
China has already begun moving the some 250 million rural residents into new cities and towns, hoping to spark a new wave of growth. Changing the economic structure, with growth based on domestic demand for products instead of relying heavily on exports, is the goal. Small rural homes are being replaced with high-rises as a result. The rural country is essentially being ripped apart. New urban schools are built in the ruins if ancient temples. It seems very similar to the Great Leap Forward.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/16/world/asia/chinas-great-uprooting-moving-250-million-into-cities.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
As Chinese agriculture becomes more mechanized it will be interesting to see how rural populations are affected. I am inclined to think that output per worker will increase with an increase in machinery which would decrease the amount of laborers needed to efficiently farm their land.