Domestic Wheat Trade and Its Associated Virtual Cropland Flow in China, 2010–2015

Xiaolin Chen, Xiaojie Liu, Litao Liu, Yali Zhang, Jinhua Guo, Jing Huang, Meijun Zhou, Yang Zhao, Liang Wu, Lun Yang and Fei Lun
Additional contact information
Xiaolin Chen: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Xiaojie Liu: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing 100101, China
Litao Liu: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing 100101, China
Yali Zhang: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing 100101, China
Jinhua Guo: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing 100101, China
Jing Huang: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Meijun Zhou: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Yang Zhao: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Liang Wu: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing 100101, China
Lun Yang: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, CAS, Beijing 100101, China
Fei Lun: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China

Sustainability, 2018, vol. 10, issue 5, 1-15

Abstract: How to meet food demands with limited cropland has become a serious problem worldwide, especially in China. Global and national food trade can alleviate regional food unbalance among different countries or regions to some extent. The embedded virtual land also flows with food trade, and reasonable food trade can save global croplands and protect local ecosystems. Therefore, it is of great importance to study how trade influences land use as well as its associated environmental consequences. Recent studies have mainly focused on global food trade and its associated virtual land flow; however, only a few have focused on national food trade and its associated virtual land flow. Thus, this study aims to explore the domestic wheat trade and its associated virtual land flows in China during the period 2010–2015, based on the CHINAGRO model and previous studies. The Huang-Huai-Hai Plain and its surrounding regions were the main producers and consumers of wheat and virtual wheat. Without wheat stocks and international wheat trade, the annual domestic wheat trade accounted for 16.43% of the total national wheat production in China. Anhui was the largest net exporter of wheat, followed by Henan, while the developed areas such as Beijing, Guangdong, and Shanghai were the main net importers. Additionally, as an important transfer region, Jiangsu was the largest exporter and importer of wheat virtual cropland, but it finally presented as a net exporter of wheat cropland. During this period, domestic wheat trade led to a total land savings of 2.62 Mha/a, accounting for 10.80% of Chinese wheat cropland. However, compared with the year 2010, Shandong, Hebei, and Sichuan turned into wheat net importers in 2015, which was due to different reasons such as national agriculture polices and economic development. In addition, the net virtual cropland per capita has been greatly influenced by local economic development.

Keywords: domestic trade; wheat consumption; wheat production; virtual cropland; China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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