The agricultural improvement farm in Taichung District actively carries out wheat variety breeding, and invites Japanese agricultural experts to make field trips, hoping to increase wheat yield. (Photo courtesy/Agriculture Committee) In recent years, the Agriculture Committee of the Executive Yuan and the agricultural improvement farms in Taichung area have been more active in cultivating wheat varieties. Under the current situation that China people's eating habits have changed and the international wheat price has risen, the domestic food self-sufficiency rate can be improved. Wheat cultivation can be seen in many places, such as Daya in Taichung and Tainan, Miaoli Garden, Dongshi in Chiayi and Yuli in Hualien.
Lin Jinhong, director of the Extension Course of Agricultural Reform Farm in Taichung District, pointed out that Taiwan Province Province had a history of planting wheat in the past, and wheat was introduced since the Japanese occupation period, which led to the appearance of place names such as "Mailiao". However, with the better rice planting income, the wheat planting area decreased. Wheat planting in Taiwan Province Province reached a peak of 25,207 hectares in 1949. Later, because the price of imported wheat is much lower than the planting cost of domestic wheat, the planting area has been reduced year by year, until now only about 150 hectares are left, and the annual import quantity of wheat is between 100- 165438+ 10,000 tons.
In the past, wheat cultivation in Taiwan Province only depended on the people's own cultivation, and the agricultural sector lacked R&D personnel and equipment, just as the troops were poorly equipped and could not fight in the face of the food crisis. Chief Lin Jinhong pointed out that Taiwan Province Province itself is not suitable for wheat cultivation. Wheat likes dry climate, the humidity should not be too heavy, and it should not be too dry and short of water, which is suitable for temperate climate.
Growing wheat in Taiwan Province Province has inherent environmental disadvantages. For a long time, wheat has been regarded as a winter rotation crop, which needs to be harvested before transplanting in March, and the planting time of wheat is very short. Therefore, the selection of varieties is based on early maturity, heat tolerance and moisture tolerance, which limits the quality of wheat.
However, with the changes of the times, pasta has become another staple food besides rice in China. According to the investigation of the Agriculture Committee, at present, China people consume an average of 48 kilograms of Mi Yue every year, but the demand for edible wheat is increasing day by day. The per capita consumption of wheat in Taiwan Province Province has increased from 20 kg per year in 1970s to 36 kg at present, mainly due to the annual import of 165438+ 10,000 metric tons of wheat.
Nowadays, under the influence of the global extreme climate, the output of many wheat exporting countries has decreased significantly, and the rise in oil prices has increased the cost of shipping, which has led to an increase in international wheat prices and also affected domestic prices. Various factors have prompted Taichung Agricultural Reform Farm to contact, and Mexico International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) has applied to introduce wheat materials with different characteristics, such as milling, heat resistance, rust resistance and Durant wheat, and domesticated them in the field, hoping to breed them.
In addition, the wheat variety currently cultivated in Taiwan Province Province is "Taizhongxuan No.2" bred by Taichung Agricultural Reform Farm in 1972. In recent years, with the efforts of many concerned farmers, it has actively tried to plant wheat in all parts of Taiwan Province Province, which can be seen in Taichung, Tainan, Miaoli, Chiayi and Hualien. Moreover, it broke the restriction that domestic wheat is limited to the use of distiller's yeast, and diversified into products such as flour, noodles or steamed bread, providing opportunities for Chinese people to buy related products.