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Potential of Grassland Agriculture in Southern China and Its Significance to Food Security |
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Abstract: Discussed in this article are major types of grassland agricultural systems in southern China and their potential productivities in the context of food security. The analysis indicates that southern China, with a favorable climate and diverse land forms, is of great potentiality for grassland agriculture development. Typical types of grassland agriculture in the region include cultivated perennial pastures on temperate uplands, annual ryegrass on winter-fallow paddyfields, integrated warm-cool season annual forage crops, and silvipastoral systems. With rapid economic growth, there has been a decrease in per capita consumption of food grain, but an increase in per capita consumption of meats, which offers a good opportunity for developing grassland agriculture. A simple calculation indicates that the forage production may substitute the grain production in some extent with respect to food consumption demands.
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Received: 21 August 2008
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