Stimulus sops up farmland

A total of 40,000 hectares of arable land will be acquired in the coming two years for the projects listed in the 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) stimulus package, a senior official said yesterday.

The amount, however, would meet only half of the demand, Dong Zouji, director of the Ministry of Land and Resources' planning department, said. The rest of the land acquired for the projects will be non-arable.

The acquisition of the farmland for various projects, such as railways, airports and residential buildings, will not threaten China's food security, Dong said, because the move is designed to be carried out in a controlled way.