BEIJING -- China's State-owned grain reserve enterprises are expected to purchase around 420 million tonnes of grain from farmers and producers this year, which will mark the second consecutive year that the grain purchase volume is above 400 million tonnes.

According to a national work conference on food and strategic reserves that concluded Thursday, the country has strengthened the organization and coordination of grain purchasing and taken multiple measures to smooth the channels for farmers to sell grains.

Grain purchase, along with the policy of setting a minimum grain purchase price, is an important part of China's macro control measures as it is key to safeguarding national food security, maintaining the stability of food prices, protecting the interests of farmers and ensuring supplies in emergency situations.

Currently, the purchase of autumn grains is being accelerated, with corn purchase work entering a peak period in the country's northern and northeastern regions, according to Liu Huanxin, head of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration.

With the growing volume of reserves, the scale of China's grain storage facilities is also increasing year by year, effectively meeting grain storage needs, Liu said.

By the end of 2023, the official said the capacity of standard warehouses in good conditions in the country exceeded 700 million tonnes, an increase of 36 percent compared to 2014.

China's grain output hit a record high of 706.5 million tonnes in 2024, an increase of 1.6 percent from last year's output. The year 2024 also marks the first time the country registered a grain harvest of over 700 million tonnes, according to the National Bureau of Statistics data.