Siping has had another record harvest year.

The city achieved an estimated grain output of 8.5 million tons in 2013, up 10.2 percent over 2012, a senior city government official said.

It is the 10th consecutive year of increases in the size of grain harvests, said Liu Xijie, Party chief of the city.

Situated on the Songliao Plain in Northeast China, Siping is one of Jilin province's breadbasket regions. It covers more than 14,000 square kilometers, including 913,000 hectares of arable land, about 16 percent of the province's total farmland.

About 2 million farmers in Siping contribute 23 percent of Jilin's annual grain output.

The city owes its strength in grain production in part to its advantageous location inside one of the world's greatest belts for corn and rice production.

More importantly, its success can be attributed to the efforts of the local government to reform and modernize agriculture, local media reports.

"The city government has made the development of modern agriculture a top priority for years and considered the 'sannong' issues (farmers, villages and agriculture) as the core of the government works," Liu told China Daily.

The Party chief said he believed the government ought to do things that "farmers can not and do not want to do".

In recent years, the central government has reinforced its financial support for farmers and brought them more tangible benefits. Direct financial subsidy to farmers in Siping totaled 2 billion yuan (328.2 million) this year.

The steadily increasing price of agricultural products has also sparked interest in grain cultivation.

The key to developing modern agriculture lies in technological innovation, according to the local government. Farmers in Siping are encouraged to use advanced technology in cultivation.

For example, a pilot program that uses scientific soil testing to select the proper fertilizer has been launched across the city.

Moreover, technology has been upgraded in Yitong county to allow farmers to receive test data by phone.

Cao Jianguo, a local farmer, currently grows 2.5 hectares of corn. He said the project not only helped him reduce the use of fertilizers but also increased the corn yields by nearly two tons.

The Siping government also invites agricultural experts every year to offer farmers professional guidance on cultivation trends as well as controlling crop diseases and pests.

On the basis of free association, mutual benefit and democratic management, about 160 specialized farmers' cooperatives have been set up in the city. Production, processing and sales are integrated in some of the cooperatives.

Boosting the rural economy as well as increasing the production efficiency and farmers' incomes is the focus of Siping's agricultural development, Liu said.

Years of efforts have helped the city win many national honors and awards. It made a list of China's top 50 in grain output in 2012. It is also a key national livestock product manufacturing base.

Also, Siping is home to seven State-level agro-product companies.

"Siping is undergoing the transformation from a large agricultural city to a strong one, so we will continue to introduce advanced experiences and explore the methods of developing modern agriculture," Liu said.

haonan@chinadaily.com.cn