FAO/GIEWS - Foodcrops & Shortages 11/98 - CHINA (25 November)
Official reports indicate that drought conditions have affected winter wheat growth in the north and the maturation of late rice in the south. Earlier during summer, floods in Central and Southern China destroyed several million hectares of cropland, damaged agricultural infrastructure and, in some cases, delayed planting of the late-double crop. Most of the provinces affected are major rice producing areas.
It is estimated that the area under wheat and other winter grains will increase by about 2.1 percent compared with last year. The 1998 paddy output is provisionally forecast to decline by about 9 million tonnes from last year�s record to 191 million tonnes.
An Emergency Operation, jointly approved by FAO and WFP to raise 247 214 tonnes of rice, has began in October targeting 5.8 million vulnerable people affected by the floods. As of 5 November, confirmed contributions amount to about 32 percent of the Emergency Operation requirement.
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