The nation's grain security and import quota will not be affected by the El Nino phenomenon, thanks to its high staple grain inventory and stable summer crop output, experts said on Tuesday.
El Nino－a warming of the surface temperature in the Pacific Ocean that affects wind patterns－has brought more rain to the south of the country, increasing the chances of floods and small rivers overflowing.
The China Meteorological Administration said earlier this month it is expecting a moderate El Nino to affect the country this year, which could cause heavy rain in the south and drought in the north.
Li Guoxiang, deputy director of the Rural Development Institute at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, noted that China had completed the harvest of summer crops this month.
The total area of summer-crop farmland, which mainly yields wheat and early season rice, reached 21.67 million hectares this year, up 66,670 hectares from last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
In Shaanxi province, the yield of summer crops could increase by 10 percent over last year thanks to favorable weather conditions and the application of agricultural technology, officials said.
