Explanatory Notes on Main Statistical Indicators
Gross Output Value of Agriculture,
Forestry, Animal Husbandry and Fishery refers to the total value of products of agriculture,
forestry, animal husbandry and fishery, and total value of services in support
of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery activities. It reflects
the total scale and results of agricultural production during a given period.
Prior to 1957,
Gross output value
of agriculture is obtained by multiplying the output of each product or
by-product by its price, resulting in the output value of each single item. For
a small number of products, annual output of which is not available or
difficult to get due to the long production (growing) process involved, the
output value is estimated through an indirect approach. The sum of output
values of all products of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery
and services in support to those industries is then equal to the gross output
value of agriculture.
Grain Output refers to the total output in the whole country including
grains produced by State farms, collective units, rural households, as well as
by farms affiliated to industrial and mining enterprises and other production
units. Grain includes rice, wheat, corn, sorghum, millet and other
miscellaneous grains as well as tubers and beans. Output of beans refers to dry
beans without pods. The output of tubers (sweet potatoes and potatoes, not
including taros and cassava) are converted into that of grain at the ratio 4:1,
i.e. 4 kilograms of fresh tubers were equivalent to 1 kilogram of grain up to
1963. Since 1964 the ratio for conversion has been 5:1. Tubers supplied as
vegetables (such as potatoes) in cities and suburbs are calculated as fresh
vegetables and their output is not included in the output of grain. Output of
all other grains refers to husked grain. Data on grain production before 1989
were obtained through the Comprehensive Statistical Reporting System. Since
1989, data from sample surveys are used.
Cotton Output refers to cotton production in the whole country including
cotton planted in spring and in autumn. Output is measured as the weight of
ginned cotton. Ceiba is not included.
Output of
Oil-bearing Crops refers to the total production of oil-bearing crops of
various kinds, including peanuts (dry, in shell), rapeseeds, sesame, sunflower
seeds, flax seeds, and other oil-bearing crops. Soybeans, oil-bearing woody
plants, and wild oil-bearing crops are not included.
Output of Aquatic Products refers to catches of both artificially cultured and
naturally grown aquatic products, including fish, shrimps, crabs and shellfish
in sea and inland water as well as seaweed. Freshwater plants are not
included. Data on output of aquatic
products are reported by aquatic product and statistical agencies level by
level. Before 1995, among the shellfish, oyster was counted as fresh meat; 5
kilograms of ark shell, clams and frogs are equivalent to 1 kilogram of fresh
aquatic products; they have all been counted as fresh aquatic products since
1996.
Output
of Pork, Beef, and Mutton refers
to the meat of slaughtered hogs, cattle, sheep and goats with head, feet, and
offal taken away. Data refers to the production of the whole country. Before
1996, it was a comprehensive reporting from the lower level to the upper one. The
First Agricultural Census of China in 1996 revealed some discrepancy between
the production of animal products from the annual reports and that from the
census. Efforts were made to
adjust the output value of animal husbandry to make the figures from the annual
reports consistent with the census data. Since 1999, the NBS conducted sample
surveys for the major animal husbandry products, such as hogs, cattle, sheep
and goats and fowls, and the data from sample surveys are used as national
finalized data. Those products, which are not covered by the sample survey, are
still reported by statistical agencies level by level. In 2007, the data on
animal husbandry from 2000 to 2006 were revised according to the results of the
Second Agriculture Census of China. In 2008, A Monitoring and Survey Program
was set up on main livestock, the data on the main livestock such as hog,
cattle, sheep and poultry became the official data based on the sampling
survey.
Number of Livestock
or Poultry in Stock at Beginning (or End) of Period refers to the total number of large animals, pigs, sheep, fowls, etc.
raised by rural cooperative organizations, State farms, rural individuals,
government agencies, schools, industrial and mining enterprises, army, and
urban residents at the beginning (or end) of the reference period. Data
reporting system and data adjustment are the same as that in the output of
pork, beef and mutton.
Sown Area of Crops refers to area of land sown or transplanted with crops
regardless of being in cultivated area or non-cultivated area. Area of land
re-sown due to natural disasters is also included. At present, the sown area of
crops mainly include the following 10 categories of crops: grain, oil-bearing
crops, cotton, hemp, sugar crops, tobacco, medicinal materials, vegetables, melons
and other farm crops.
Irrigated Area refers to
area of land that are effectively irrigated, i.e. relatively level land, where
there are water sources or complete sets of irrigation facilities to lift and
move adequate water for irrigation purpose under normal conditions. Under normal
situations, irrigated area is the sum of watered fields and irrigated fields
where irrigation systems or equipment have been installed for regular
irrigation purpose. It is an important indicator to reflect the farmland water
conservancy construction in
Consumption of
Chemical Fertilizers in Agriculture refers to the quantity of chemical fertilizers applied in
agriculture in the year, including nitrogenous fertilizer, phosphate
fertilizer, potash fertilizer, and compound fertilizer. The consumption of
chemical fertilizers is calculated in terms of volume of effective components
by means of converting the gross weight of the respective fertilizers into weight
containing effective component (e.g. nitrogen content in nitrogenous
fertilizer, phosphorous pentoxide contents in
phosphate fertilizer, and potassium oxide contents in potash fertilizer).
Compound fertilizer is converted in regard to its major components. The formula
is:
Volume of effective
component= physical quantity× effective component of certain chemical fertilizer
(%)
Total Power of
Agricultural Machinery refers to total mechanical power
of machinery used in agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery,
including machinery for ploughing, irrigation and drainage, harvesting,
transport, plant protection, animal husbandry, forestry and fishery and other
agricultural machineries. (For the power of internal combustion engines, it is
converted from its horsepower into watts while for electric motors the output
power is converted into watts.) Machinery employed for non-agricultural
purposes, such as the machines used in township-run and village-run industry,
construction, non-agricultural transport, scientific experiments and teaching,
are not included. Data are mainly from agricultural machinery agencies.