Resource Utilization Efficiency Across Commodity Grain Producing Areas
商品粮产区农户粮食生产资源利用效率研究

Commodity grain producing areas are important to national food security and Chinese farmland is approaching the red line of 120×106ha because of rapid urbanization. A study of farmer grain production resource utilization efficiency is of strategic significance to ensure national food safety. Shandong province is one of China's main grain production areas with total grain output of 442.63×109kg in 2011, making it third in the country. Here, we used analytic hierarchy processes, factor analysis and cluster analysis based on 2008 cost data from farmers in Shandong to analyze farmer grain production resource utilization efficiency and its regional distribution. Factor analysis results show that the main restricting factors for farmer grain production resource utilization efficiency were technical innovation, the degree of mechanization, the strength of chemical fertilizers and the ratio of capital output. We regarded these factors generally as the food production scale, and progress in science and technology. We found that farmer grain production resource utilization efficiency is lower in some of the more developed commodity grain producing areas; this directly affects the rate of food commodities and thus restricts national food security. To some extent this means that increasing regional economic development levels and technical progress does not promote increasing grain production scientifically and the sustainable use of scarce resources and cultivated land. Therefore, the central government should increase the strength of allowances and direct limited subsidies capital into all commodity grain-producing areas. This will inspire production through mechanization and large-scale production, popularize fine varieties, promote conservation tillage and the scientific application of fertilizers and pesticides, to ensure national food security.