Raiders of farmland

The soaring food prices worldwide should make the Chinese government more sensitive to violations in the transfer of the land use right, as these cut into the ever-dwindling area of arable land and finally threaten the food security of this populous nation.

The latest investigation published by the National Audit Office last week suggests that buying land on lease from villagers for non-agricultural use, instead of through outright acquisition, still poses a serious problem in many localities. It is a form of violation of the land transfer norms that has been rampant in recent years.

This illegal practice is aimed at circumventing the stipulation that the occupation of basic farmland for non-agricultural use must get the approval from the State Council. For villagers, the rent from leasing their fields is much higher than the income from growing crops on them.