Quality targeted in Beijing's drive to spur rural economy

Beijing will seek to realise a four per cent growth in farmers' income this year by upgrading product quality and plans to boost the rural economy by developing 'township' industries.

Agriculture Minister Chen Yaobang said the rural economy would enter a new stage of restructuring and township businesses - mostly household workshops and small plants - would take the lead.

'The target is to boost the growth rate of township enterprises by 14 per cent and to increase farmers' income by four per cent this year,' Mr Chen said at an agricultural conference in Beijing on Wednesday.

He said farmers should spend more on improving their products and stop planting low-quality soya bean, wheat and grain they could not sell.

He stressed that farmers needed to pay more attention to market demands and standards - both domestic and international.

'The quantity of agricultural produce to be grown should be based on domestic and international demands,' Mr Chen said, emphasising that quality must be up to international standards.