new policy · science-first rethink for ag modernisation
revamped R&D system aims to power Beijing’s ag tech push through 2035
implementation opinions on enhancing agricultural science and technology innovation
《关于加快提升农业科技创新体系整体效能的实施意见》
MARA, MoST, MoE, MIIT, MoF, MWR, CAS | 6 May 2025
takeaways
calls for a high-efficiency, demand-oriented national ag science system by 2035
backs enterprise-led innovation with new R&D funding mechanisms, postdoc stations and IP reform
restructures public R&D roles: CAS (Chinese Academy of Sciences) and YZB Lab to focus on strategy; provincial ag academies on regional integration
expands applied R&D and talent pipelines in universities, with stronger incentives for tech transfer
adds new tech platforms: ag science parks, smart breeding facilities, global R&D centres, and international cooperation hubs
bottlenecks
fragmentation and low conversion rates remain endemic
local ag academies often lack budgetary autonomy and cross-provincial coordination
ag-tech commercialisation still lags due to weak incentives and patchy IP enforcement
persistent tensions between elite research mandates and grassroots tech needs
background
This sweeping policy formalises the second pillar of the agricultural strong country plan (2024–2035): a high-efficiency ag innovation system with tighter coordination, stronger enterprise leadership, and faster commercialisation. It builds on the 2025 No. 1 Document’s call to deploy ‘new productive forces’ and align R&D with national needs—especially in seed tech, biotech, digital farming, and smart equipment.
Where the national ag sci-tech innovation key areas (2024–2028) charted what to research—from high-oil soy to low-carbon farming—this latest move tackles how to deliver: clarifying institutional roles, reshaping incentive structures, and scaling frontier tech.
Combined with new judicial protections for biotech and breeding IP, the system push signals a shift from fragmented capacity-building to outcome-driven integration.
assessment
The implementation opinions mark a shift from fragmented pilot projects to a systemic reordering of agricultural R&D. SciTech is no longer cast as a background enabler, but the ‘core engine’ of ‘new quality agricultural productive forces’ and agricultural transformation.
Yet integration bottlenecks and overlapping mechanisms continue to limit research returns.
Institutional redesign is the policy’s core innovation. Clearer divisions of labour are outlined: central institutes to focus on national strategy, provincial academies on integration and trials, and universities on upstream research and talent. Enterprise-led R&D is elevated, supported by a suite of reforms—from IP protection and shared platforms to talent mobility and postdoc stations.
This echoes Zhao Wanping 赵皖平, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences vice president, who called in March for the PRC ag tech ecosystem to leap from seed and machinery 2.0 to a 4.0 model: biotech-led, digitally integrated, and intelligence-enabled.
Talent remains the decisive variable. As Wei Houkai 魏后凯, Rural Development Institute director, stressed at an April People’s Daily roundtable, modernisation hinges less on quantity than on quality of labour. He called for a tiered framework spanning county-level tech agents, rural entrepreneurs, and frontier scientists.
Zhang Fusuo, 张福锁 CAE academician and CAU professor, cautioned that side lining smallholders in tech deployment risks excluding the very actors needed to sustain adoption. Inclusive organisational models, simplified tools, and tailored support are needed to bridge the digital divide.
Implementation frictions are already surfacing. Smart agriculture often imposes an ‘intelligence tax’, argues Shi Xi 石茜, Sun Yat-sen University professor and agricultural remote sensing specialist. Her 2024 fieldwork across 15 sites discovered projects using outdated equipment and data-heavy systems with limited agronomic value—99 percent of collected data, she found, is unusable.
Seed oversight is another pressure point. Jing Fei 靖飞, dean at Bohai University, notes that weak enforcement and fragmented regulation continue to erode varietal quality and IP protection. Without stronger farmer-facing certification systems and brand-building efforts, enforcement alone is unlikely to change adoption habits.
The real test lies in whether the new institutional architecture can convert policy ambition into traction.
Can cross-tier coordination displace stovepiped structures with functional synergy? Will local talent systems and research platforms bridge the gap between lab breakthroughs and field application? If not, as Song Jianxiao 宋建晓, CASS Rural Development Institute deputy director, warned in a 23 April Farmer’s Daily op-ed, the gap between innovation and impact may only widen.
questions
can the new institutional architecture overcome entrenched fragmentation and turf protection across research bodies?
will enterprise-led R&D deliver scalable solutions for smallholders—or remain stuck at the showcase level?
can tools and platforms shift from overengineered data capture to real-time agronomic value?
will stronger IP enforcement and varietal certification reshape farmer seed choices—or stay peripheral?
how quickly can provincial academies and local authorities absorb and act on these new mandates?
🔗 related policies
opinions on safeguarding sci-tech innovation with high-quality trial services《关于以高质量审判服务保障科技创新的意见》 | SPC | 15 Apr 2025
national ag sci-tech innovation key areas (2024–2028)《全国农业科技创新重点领域（2024–2028年）》 | MARA | 14 Feb 2025
2025 China Seed Congress and Nanfan Silicon Valley Forum held 《2025中国种子大会暨南繁硅谷论坛召开质量基础设施集成服务赋能南繁种业》| SAMR 8 Apr 2025
accelerate building an agricultural strong country plan (2024–2035)《加快建设农业强国规划（2024－2035年）》 | State Council, CPC Central Committee | 7 Apr 2025
special action for digital villages to strengthen agriculture, benefit farmers and raise rural living standards《开展数字乡村强农惠农富农专项行动》 | MARA, CAC, PBoC, MofCOM | 7 Mar 2025
opinions on further deepening rural reform and advancing all-around revitalisation [2025 No. 1 Document]《关于进一步深化农村改革扎实推进乡村全面振兴的意见》 | CPC Central Committee, State Council | 23 Feb 2025
opinions on inspection of Agriculture Law implementation report《对农业法实施情况报告的意见和建议》 | NPC | 29 Oct 2024
opinions on building a diversified food supply system《关于践行大食物观构建多元化食物供给体系的意见》 | State Council | 15 Sep 2024