How China’s ‘dual circulation’ drive is shaping up – and what’s next on the agenda
- Four years ago, China put forward its ‘dual circulation’ strategy to shore up the domestic market and reduce dependence on the West – has it made progress?
Though the days of four-legged transport - and the humble carrot as a fuel source - have passed, the root vegetable continues to serve as a rhetorical stand-in for incentives of all types. But in modern parlance, that incentive is rarely an actual carrot; humans have, after all, come to desire more than what might satisfy a mule.
But for Samuel Ling and his colleagues at an agricultural company in Shanghai, metaphor and reality have merged.
Two years ago, his employer – a specialist in seeds – was given an important mandate by the government, he said: replace imported seeds with ones “developed ourselves”. At the top of the list? A new variety of carrot.
I think it’s worth the effort, as it means Chinese farmers will have access to cheaper seeds of our own making
Designated by the country’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs as a seed producer entitled to special financial support, Ling’s company – which he declined to name, as he has not been authorised to speak to the media – has yet to make any breakthroughs.