Climate change and the food production system: impacts and adaptation in China

摘要

China has received a lot of attention from both the scientific and policy community in its ability to maintain self-reliance in food supply (Verburg et al. 2000; Yang and Li 2000; Yu et al. 2012). Advances in technology and changing agronomic practices have been responsible for significant increases in food production in China over past several decades (Xiong et al. 2012). Yet, since the 1980s, the unprecedented growth of both the economy and the population has led to a decrease in the area of cropland (Deng et al. 2006; He et al. 2013). The growing competition for land, water, and energy, and the overexploitation of fisheries, seriously impairs the production of food. Global environmental change, particularly climate change, makes the situation more challenging. Changes in climate may have implications for climate-sensitive systems such as agriculture, forestry, and other natural resources (Wu et al. 2011; Verburg et al. 2013).