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04.Increasing Arable Land Utilization Rate and Producing Environment-friendly Crops
In the past, the primary solution to food shortages has been to bring more land into agriculture. While grain productivity has been increased with innovation of new variety and cultivation technologies, the land utilization rate was decreased. Some new land could be brought into cultivation, but the competition for land from salinization, inefficiency of cropping system, and other consequences of intensification makes this an increasingly unlikely and costly solution.
Hence, this agenda aims to address these challenges by increasing arable land utilization rate using double or triple cropping system in reclaimed tidal lands and enhancing environment-friendly crop production.
This agenda has three research fields in the following:
(1) improvement of soil property for farming and crop production in reclaimed saline land,
(2) development of the forage production system integrating with varietal productivity and cropping system, and
(3) development of environment-friendly crop production technology.
Desalination along with screening of adaptable crops are required to convert reclaimed saline lands into highly productive field. Development of the forage production system and integrating summer and winter forages should be precisely designed according to area and period in order to optimize the use of land and provide feed year-round. Increased yield under chemical inputs is still a major goal, however, the importance of organic materials, greater nutrient-use efficiency, as well as tolerance or resistance of biotic stresses (weeds, diseases, insects, and other pests), is also likely to increase.
The Department of Rice and Winter Cereal Crop will carry out the distribution of research products in cooperation with other related organizations such as Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affarirs(MAFRA), local government, international research institutes, and local farmers.
The key outcomes of this research will be the knowledge and ability to grow crops in places that are currently unsuitable, particularly the reclaimed saline lands. The technology in utilization of reclaimed saline soil including desalination will help achieve reliable crop production. The higher food and feed self-sufficiency can be obtained through increased production of forage crop using sophisticated cropping system. Additionally, this research and the resulting technologies will provide lower input of chemical fertilizers and pesticide, thus supporting the government's policy of sustainable agriculture and healthy landscapes.
