CRI听力:China's Soybean Consumption Relies Mostly on Import

On the docks of China's port city Dalian in the northeast province of Liaoning, soybeans are piling up. The operators never expected this dramatic increase in imported soybeans.

Zhao Zifeng with Dalian Port Company says soybean imports hit a new high in November.

"Another 600,000 tons will be shipped to ports in Liaoning. For our port alone, the amount is estimated to be 400,000 tons. By the end of October this year, we've seen nearly 1.2 million tons of imports, that's a 25 percent increase year on year."

China relies on imports for 80 percent of its domestic soybean consumption. On the one hand, oil pressing companies prefer foreign beans because they are less expensive and produce more oil. On the other hand, Chinese farmers are reluctant to grow the oilseed. Dai Chengfu is one of them.

"The beans don't sell for a good price, and they don't yield much. Last year the corn price increased, so we all wanted to grow some corn. This year we all grew corn in the area."

Dai is a farmer in Hua'nang County, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. It used to be a major source of China's soybean supply, but now many farmers have given up the oilseed for more profitable plants, according to Ru Jinbao, a town mayor in the county.

"There are almost 30,000 hectares of arable land in our town. The area used for soybeans is less than 7,000 hectares. That is a dramatic decrease from the previous 20,000 hectares."

The situation is the same throughout China. The area used for soybean production has been dropping for five years in a row, this year by 13.8 percent. The country's soybean output has fallen by 18.3 percent to 9.8 million tons, the lowest in three years.

This makes the Chinese soybean industry susceptible to price changes in the international market, warns Wang Xiang, analyst with Everbright Futures.

Earlier this year the soybean price skyrocketed when the US Department of Agriculture forecasted a cut in the country's soybean output due to fears of a draught. Many Chinese oil pressing companies bought large amount of soybeans at a high price, and hoping it would keep rising.

However, when the US forecast was proved wrong soybean prices dropped dramatically, delivering a heavy blow to China's oil pressing companies.

Experts say that to avoid similar cases in the future, China must regain control over the soybean industry by improving production efficiency and protecting the farmers.

For CRI, I'm Laiming.