The Heartland of China, the Granary of the Nation. Henan, with its vast cultivated land and suitable climatic conditions, is one of China’s main grain production bases, particularly for wheat and corn, which occupy a significant proportion of the country’s total output. As a major agricultural province, Henan plays a pivotal role in China’s agricultural development.
High-Standard Farmland in Yuanyang County, Henan Province. (Photo by Liu Lu, The Paper)
Recently, The Paper followed the Supreme People’s Procuratorate’s new media interview team to Xinxiang, Henan, where we observed firsthand the proactive measures taken by the Xinxiang Municipal Procuratorate in supporting the stable and secure “Chinese Food Bowl” and safeguarding food security.
During the on-site interview, The Paper learned that in 2022, the Henan Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government made a significant strategic decision to establish the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley” in Xinxiang, requiring the province to pool its resources and wisdom to build a “flagship of the seed industry in Central China.”
Staff from the Xinxiang Municipal Procuratorate introduced that wherever the construction of the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley” advances, procuratorial work will follow, and procuratorial services and support will be provided. “We will continue to shoulder the responsibility of safeguarding the ‘Chinese Food Bowl’ and food security, fulfilling our procuratorial duties with high quality to support the construction of the ‘Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley,’ becoming a strong safeguard for ‘Chinese grain and Chinese seeds’.”
Seeds are the “chips” of agriculture.
Staff from the Xinxiang Municipal Procuratorate introduced that in 2022, Henan Province issued the “Construction Plan for the Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley” and established the Shennong Seed Industry Laboratory, focusing on the major needs of the national seed industry and food security, aiming to build a 100-billion-level seed and grain industry cluster.
“If you don’t choose the right seeds when farming, all your hard work will be in vain.” Seeds are the “chips” of agriculture. Regarding the issue of fake seeds, staff from the Xinxiang Municipal Procuratorate introduced that in a previous case involving Zhu XX, who was not prosecuted for producing and selling shoddy products, it was discovered that although the “three-no” wheat seeds sold by Zhu XX did not constitute a criminal offense, they were identified as fake seeds according to administrative regulations. A procuratorial opinion was issued to the agricultural and rural department, suggesting that they administer punishment to Zhu XX according to the law, thereby strengthening seed protection.
The Paper learned locally that there are 87 seed breeding enterprises and self-taught farmer seed breeders in Xinxiang, with one-third of the enterprises having their own intellectual property varieties. To broaden the protection channels for technological innovation, on October 13, 2023, the Weibin District Procuratorate of Xinxiang established an intellectual property procuratorate office stationed at the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley” within the Plain Demonstration Area Administrative Committee, strengthening the protection of intellectual property rights in agriculture-related cases and creating a “four-in-one” working model for criminal, civil, administrative, and public interest litigation procuratorates in agriculture-related intellectual property cases, effectively safeguarding the security of the seed industry.
Meanwhile, the Yuanyang County Procuratorate in Henan Province is actively seeking ways to integrate procuratorial functions with the construction of the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley,” striving to create the “Shennong Guard” procuratorate brand for procuratorate services in agricultural development. It integrates criminal, civil, administrative, and public interest litigation functions and has introduced and implemented the “Nine Measures to Serve and Safeguard the Development of the Prefabricated Meal Industry,” extending procuratorate services to the entire industrial chain of the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley.”
Yuanyang Rice. (Photo by Liu Lu, The Paper)
As the southern region of the “one core, three zones” development strategy of the Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley, Yuanyang County in Henan Province is known for its locally produced rice, which is hailed as “China’s Finest Rice.” In 2003, the former General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine approved the implementation of protection for “Yuanyang Rice” as a product with a protected geographical indication, making it a national geographical indication product in China. According to the “Measures for the Protection of Geographical Indication Products,” 26 out of 126 rice processing enterprises in Yuanyang County have been approved to use the special mark for geographical indication products of “Yuanyang Rice.” In 2010, due to administrative division adjustments, some townships in Yuanyang County were reorganized to form the Plain Demonstration Area, and rice processing enterprises within its jurisdiction were unable to use the “Yuanyang Rice” geographical indication, causing distress to local farmers.
Regarding the existing争议 (dispute), a relevant case-handling procurator from the Yuanyang County Procuratorate in Henan Province introduced that in July of this year, the Yuanyang County Procuratorate issued a procuratorial suggestion to the Yuanyang County Market Supervision Bureau, urging it to fully fulfill its duties, establish a long-term mechanism for protecting the “Yuanyang Rice” market brand with a protected geographical origin, increase supervision and investigation of rice processing enterprises that unauthorizedly use the special mark for geographical indication products of “Yuanyang Rice,” and guide processing enterprises within the Yuanyang rice planting area to apply for and use the special mark for geographical indication products of “Yuanyang Rice” in a standardized manner, fully leveraging the brand value of geographical indications.
Procuratorate Organs Assist in the Construction of High-Standard Farmland
Apart from protecting agricultural “chips,” procuratorate organs in Henan have always been assisting in the construction of high-standard farmland.
A relevant case-handling procurator from the Yuanyang County Procuratorate in Henan Province introduced that cultivated land is the foundation of food security. The Plain Demonstration Area, where the core region of the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley” is located, has been an important grain-producing area since ancient times. In September 2022, while fulfilling its public interest litigation duties, the Yuanyang County Procuratorate discovered that basic farmland within the core area of the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley” was illegally occupied for turf cultivation, leading to a reduction in the arable layer of the cultivated land and a weakening of soil fertility.
The Paper learned from the procuratorate that on October 19, 2022, the Yuanyang County Procuratorate in Henan Province initiated an investigation, forming a case-handling team led by the chief procurator. They conducted on-site inspections of the involved land, used drones for photographic evidence collection, and invited hired procurator assistants from relevant administrative departments to assist in querying and measuring the area of land used for turf cultivation. Upon investigation and verification, the turf cultivation area was located in the core region of the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley,” and the land used for turf cultivation was basic farmland with an area of 257.54 acres, seriously affecting the construction of the “Zhongyuan Agricultural Valley.”
On October 26, 2022, the Yuanyang County Procuratorate in Henan Province delivered a pre-litigation procuratorial suggestion to the relevant administrative department, suggesting that it fulfill its supervisory and management duties according to the law, investigate the illegal turf cultivation within its jurisdiction, and restore the original state of the cultivated land; at the same time, strengthen daily supervision, resolutely stop illegal acts such as the “non-agriculturalization” and “non-food use” of cultivated land like illegal turf cultivation within its jurisdiction, and effectively protect cultivated land resources. With the continuous urging of the procuratorate, the relevant administrative departments repaired and fully resumed farming and cultivation according to high-standard farmland standards.
The relevant case-handling procurator from the Yuanyang County Procuratorate in Henan Province pointed out that the construction of high-standard farmland is an important measure to enhance the level of agricultural industrialization and improve comprehensive grain production capacity. If the quality of high-standard farmland construction projects does not meet standards, the expected effects of high-standard farmland construction will not be achieved, which is不利 (unfavorable) for grain production. While fulfilling its public interest litigation duties, the Yuanyang County Procuratorate adopted various investigation methods to verify the specific issues existing in the quality of high-standard farmland construction projects and used procuratorial suggestions to urge administrative organs to comprehensively rectify the quality issues in high-standard farmland project construction.
Furthermore, taking the opportunity of handling individual cases, the Yuanyang County Procuratorate promoted the government to issue the “Post-Construction Management System for High-Standard Farmland,” establishing a long-term mechanism for the quality and post-construction management of high-standard farmland construction, thereby assisting in the high-quality development of grain production.