China completes germplasm resources survey, aims to reduce dependence on imported seeds

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠China has completed a comprehensive survey of agricultural germplasm resources in the first half of 2024, paving the way for its seed and animal germplasm industries to reduce reliance on imports and enhance supplies, with strategic plans to bolster self-reliance and control over germplasm resources by 2025.

Germplasm resources -- genetic material used for animal or plant breeding -- are strategic assets essential for ensuring stable and secure supplies of grain and other important agricultural products. Agricultural germplasm resources primarily encompass crops, livestock, poultry, and aquatic species.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China has made significant strides this year by prioritizing urgently needed agricultural varieties.

The country has intensified efforts to accurately identify germplasm resources, breed new varieties, support leading seed enterprises, and strengthen intellectual property protection in the seed industry. These initiatives have led to foundational and landmark achievements in revitalizing the seed industry.

In the first half of this year, the protection of germplasm resources achieved historic breakthroughs with the general survey of agricultural germplasm resources completed. The survey collected 139,000 new crop germplasm samples and 1.19 million livestock and aquatic genetic materials. Together with the previously preserved resources, China now holds the world's largest collection of agricultural germplasm resources.          "The new national crop germplasm resource bank and the marine fisheries germplasm resource bank are now fully operational. The new livestock germplasm resource bank and freshwater fisheries germplasm resource bank will be completed next year, further strengthening China's strategic capacity to preserve agricultural germplasm resources, and meeting the nation's development needs for the next 30 to 50 years," said Yang Haisheng, deputy director of the Seed Industry Management Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

Innovations in the animal germplasm industry have also progressed. By the end of June, domestic white feather broiler chickens and Pacific white shrimp had captured more than 25 percent and 35 percent of their respective markets, indicating a gradually reduced reliance on imported sources.

The seeds industry has meanwhile seen rapid progression in a batch of varieties including soybeans with high-oil and high-yield and corn for dense planting, as well as machine-harvestable and salt-tolerant varieties.

The competitiveness of leading enterprises has significantly improved, with a focus on developing 270 key national seed enterprises. These companies now cultivate over 60 percent of newly approved national varieties.

National seed supply capacity has also been enhanced, with the national-level bases having increased their seed supply capacity to over 75 percent across the country, and seed quality consistently maintaining a qualification rate of over 98 percent. Additionally, all 31 provinces in the country have established disaster relief and emergency seed reserves systems.

Progress has also been made in cleaning up the seed market. This year, a special campaign was launched to crack down on the illegal online sale of seeds. For three consecutive years, the number of seed-related disputes nationwide has declined.

"Looking ahead, we will intensify our efforts to achieve self-reliance and innovation in seed industry technology, ensuring the autonomy and control of seed sources. We will accelerate the implementation of the seed industry revitalization plan, aiming for another series of landmark achievements by 2025, and work to shift from isolated breakthroughs to comprehensive advancements in revitalizing the seed industry," Yang concluded.

China completes germplasm resources survey, aims to reduce dependence on imported seeds

The China Search and Rescue Team had pulled out four survivors - three adult females and a girl - after 13 hours of hard work in Myanmar's seriously-hit Mandalay City as of 07:15 local time on Monday.

Following the devastating earthquake in Myanmar, multiple Chinese rescue teams have arrived in the disaster-stricken areas, working with local responders around the clock to search for survivors.

Arrived in Mandalay on Sunday evening, the China Search and Rescue Team employed rescue dogs to locate a trapped survivor at the Great Wall Hotel quake site and attempted to searched for the survivor inside the damaged buildings.

Facing the challenge of a collapsed lower floor in the building where the survivor were trapped, the rescue team explored various strategies before deciding to breach from below the survivor's location, clearing the debris to create an exit and carry the survivor out with a stretcher.

At 00:40 local time on Monday, the survivor, an adult female trapped for nearly 60 hours, was rescued after over five hours of relentless work, marking the first survivor rescued by the team in the city.

Without pausing for rest, the rescuers immediately moved to another nearby site at the Sky Villa apartment complex where a girl informed the team of her 29-year-old elder sister trapping in the rubble. Following the girl's guidance, the rescuers located her elder sister, who was conscious and able to communicate.

As the rescuers worked to provide the girl with food and water and strategize the rescue, aftershocks continued to shake the area.

"The building shook noticeably and then we got out," said a team member.

The team soon returned to the rubble for rescue when the aftershock subsided.

"The lives are waiting for us and we can't give up on a single sign of life," said Han Wendong, the deputy team leader.

According to the girl, she was trapped under the rubble with her elder sister in the earthquake. Being smaller, she managed to find a narrow passage to crawl out. The rescuers found the passage and tried to reach her elder sister.

"She was saying 'hurry up' and 'help.' Her younger sister was encouraging her. It's her third day trapped here today and she's been crying. After the doctor gave her some good life support, she calmed down," said Han.

At 07:15 local time on Monday, the elder sister was freed from the rubble after the team further widened the rescue passage.

The Chinese medical team immediately gave her IV fluids and wrapped her in a thermal blanket before transferring her to a stretcher.

"It took three hours to get her out, instead of two as we expected. We kept working at night till getting her out at dawn. She's only got a cut on one leg and her vital signs are very good and stable. I hope our team will continue to do more to found and save lives," said Han.

Another two survivors were rescued by the China Search and Rescue Team in Mandalay at 05:37 and 06:20 local time on Monday, respectively.

The rescued have all been sent to the hospital for treatment.

A total of 91 personnel from five civilian emergency response forces organized by China's Ministry of Emergency Management have arrived in Myanmar, and been participating in rescue operations.

Besides, a rescue team from China's Yunnan Province rescued an elderly man who had been trapped for nearly 40 hours under the rubble of a hospital in Nay Pyi Taw on Sunday. Also on Sunday, members of the Blue Sky Rescue Team from Hunan Province successfully rescued a survivor at the Mandalay Buddhist Hall in Mandalay.

The death toll from Friday's 7.9-magnitude earthquake in Myanmar has risen to 2,056, with approximately 3,900 people injured and nearly 270 reported missing, according to the country's State Administration Council Information Team on Monday.

Chinese rescuers pull 4 survivors from rubble in Mandalay on Monday morning