The Sustainability of Agricultural Development in China: The Agriculture–Environment Nexus
1
School of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
2
School of Environment and Natural Resources, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2018, 10(6), 1776; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10061776
Received: 30 March 2018 / Revised: 14 May 2018 / Accepted: 21 May 2018 / Published: 29 May 2018
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Agriculture: The State of the Great Debates)
The article aims to provide an overview of China’s agricultural development and its
sustainability by focusing on the agriculture–environmental nexus. We first review literature
regarding trends in agricultural development and driving forces. China has made impressive
progress at providing food for 22% of the world’s population. At the same time, severe environmental
impacts have been incurred which not only affect future food security but also have impacts on other
socio-economic aspects. The agricultural policies that have been put into practice have direct or
indirect impacts on such environmental outcomes. We review the impacts of agricultural policies
as well as conservation policies, their effectiveness, some unintended consequences and conflicts.
The article concludes that technology and institutional innovation in China should emphasize more
integrated sustainable development considering the agriculture–environment nexus, instead of
setting incoherent and sometimes incompatible policy goals for each separate side. View Full-Text
sustainability by focusing on the agriculture–environmental nexus. We first review literature
regarding trends in agricultural development and driving forces. China has made impressive
progress at providing food for 22% of the world’s population. At the same time, severe environmental
impacts have been incurred which not only affect future food security but also have impacts on other
socio-economic aspects. The agricultural policies that have been put into practice have direct or
indirect impacts on such environmental outcomes. We review the impacts of agricultural policies
as well as conservation policies, their effectiveness, some unintended consequences and conflicts.
The article concludes that technology and institutional innovation in China should emphasize more
integrated sustainable development considering the agriculture–environment nexus, instead of
setting incoherent and sometimes incompatible policy goals for each separate side. View Full-Text
Keywords:
agricultural development; environmental impacts; China; sustainability; food security; agriculture–environment nexus
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MDPI and ACS Style
Yu, J.; Wu, J. The Sustainability of Agricultural Development in China: The Agriculture–Environment Nexus. Sustainability 2018, 10, 1776.
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