China to build trans-provincial grain transport

China is to establish a major trans-provincial infrastructure within five years to transport grain products from the country's north to the south, according to a newly released plan for the country's grain sector.

The release was jointly issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and the State Administration of Grain (SAG).

It said that by 2015, the country's infrastructure for grain circulation should meet the demand of growing grain production and secure supplies of grain products in the country. A modern grain storage system will also be built to ease transportation pressures.

The majority of government investment will go to the construction of drying facilities in major storage bases, said Nie Zhenbang, head of the SAG.

He said grain storage capacity will grow by 20 million tons before 2015 through the building of new depots in major grain production bases, and the country's western region. Also, open-air depots will be phased out while most grass-roots depots will be renovated.

The authorities will offer standard grain storage fittings for the country's eight million peasant households, said Nie, adding that local authorities had launched pilot projects in major grain producing areas like Hubei and Jilin provinces.

China plans to reach a grain production capacity of more than 540 million tons within five years, 8 percent more than the annual target of the 2006-2010 period, according to its 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) for National Economic and Social Development.