China's Shopping Basket Program: A 38-Year Journey Toward Food Security

Background

In the 1980s, China began implementing its reform and opening-up policy. Between 1984 and 1988, annual grain consumption grew by an average of 15 billion kilograms, while per capita arable land stood at only 1.5 mu (roughly 0.1 hectares). Arable land productivity was low and its area continued to shrink year by year. Meanwhile, from 1978 to 1988, consumption of non-staple foods surged — fresh eggs by 170%, poultry by 290%, pork by 88%, and aquatic products by 54.3%. Non-staple food supply was clearly insufficient and could not be compensated for by staple grains.

The Ministry of Agriculture of the People’s Republic of China proposed the “Shopping Basket Program” in 1988 as a public welfare initiative aimed at ensuring market supply by strengthening the production and distribution of non-staple foods. It gradually evolved into a comprehensive system covering production, distribution, and quality supervision.

The program was implemented in four phases:

1. 1989–1993: Establishing mayoral accountability and a network of trade markets;
2. 1994–1999: Promoting facility-based, diversified, and large-scale production;
3. 2000–2009: Focusing on the pollution-free agricultural product action plan;
4. 2010–present: The State Council coordinating production layout optimization and supply chain upgrades.

Through the construction of production bases, improvement of market systems, and quality safety supervision measures, the program formed a distribution network covering both production and sales, driving rapid growth in national vegetable and meat output. In 2023, China’s vegetable output reached 828.681 million tons, while fruit, meat, and aquatic product output grew to 327.443 million tons, 97.482 million tons, and 71.162 million tons respectively. A total of 1,356 agricultural product trading markets with annual turnover exceeding 100 million yuan were established nationwide, along with an agricultural product quality inspection system. The program drove rural economic development, becoming a pillar industry in many rural areas, with “Shopping Basket” products contributing one-third of farmers’ income and helping millions of rural households escape poverty.

In 2010, the State Council issued the Opinions on Coordinating the Construction of a New Round of the “Shopping Basket Program”, explicitly requiring higher self-sufficiency rates and improved regulatory mechanisms. In 2025, many local governments rolled out implementation plans focusing on facility-based production, cold-chain logistics, smart market construction, and innovation in production-sales linkage models.

Timeline

Phase One (1989–1993)

Plan

In May 1988, the Ministry of Agriculture of the People’s Republic of China submitted a proposal to the State Council titled “Suggestions on Developing Non-Staple Food Production to Ensure Urban Supply” (abbreviated as the “Shopping Basket Program”).

In August, the project was approved by the State Planning Commission. Official nationwide implementation began in January 1989.

The term “Shopping Basket” in the program refers not merely to vegetables, but to non-staple foods as a whole — and most specifically to meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy.

Outcomes

By the end of 1993, the number of agricultural and sideline product wholesale markets nationwide reached 2,080, and urban-rural trade markets reached 83,000, forming a preliminary national framework for large-scale markets and broad commodity circulation. By 1994, the program had transitioned from primarily building production bases to simultaneously developing both production bases and market systems. By the end of that year, total national meat output reached 44.993 million tons, poultry eggs 14.79 million tons, aquatic products 21.464 million tons, fruit 34.991 million tons, and vegetable-growing area reached 134 million mu. Twenty-seven provinces and municipalities had preliminarily established local reserves for major non-staple foods, effectively addressing the problem of market supply shortages.

Statistical Results of the Shopping Basket Program, 1988–1994

Source: Liu Jiang. “Earnestly Implement the New Round of the ‘Shopping Basket Program’.” People’s Daily. August 21, 1995: Page 10.

Phase Two (1994–1999)

By the end of 1993, the number of agricultural and sideline product wholesale markets nationwide reached 2,080, and urban-rural trade markets reached 83,000 — including 8,220 specialized agricultural product markets — forming a preliminary national framework for large-scale markets and broad circulation.

In 1994, the program transitioned from primarily building production bases to simultaneously developing both production bases and market systems. By the end of that year, total national meat output reached 44.993 million tons, poultry eggs 14.79 million tons, aquatic products 21.464 million tons, fruit 34.991 million tons, and vegetable-growing area reached 134 million mu. Twenty-seven provinces and municipalities had preliminarily established local reserves for major non-staple foods.

The new round of the “Shopping Basket Program” launched in 1995 featured four major characteristics:

1. Scaling up base construction with development toward regionalization, large-scale operation, facility-based production, and premium-grade output;
2. Joint efforts between urban and rural areas: not only suburban areas but also major agricultural regions actively developed the program, with national-level agricultural production bases taking shape;
3. Raising technological content, optimizing structure, and diversifying product varieties. To meet urban consumer demand for fresh, high-quality, nutritious, convenient, and pest-free products, localities widely adopted improved varieties and advanced techniques to increase both output and quality;
4. Exploring new distribution models and actively promoting the integration of production, supply, and sales across trade, industry, and agriculture.

In 1995, the Ministry of Agriculture announced the first batch of 23 nationally designated central wholesale markets for fresh agricultural products. That same year, the Ministry launched a price information network linking “Shopping Basket” product wholesale markets across large and medium-sized cities. By September of that year, the network had connected 33 wholesale markets in 28 major cities and key production areas.

In 1996, pilot work for the “Shopping Basket Program” wholesale market system construction commenced, with Wuhan, Guangzhou, Shenyang, and Xi’an selected as the first pilot cities. The pilot was jointly organized by a leading group formed by the Ministry of Agriculture and the State Commission for Restructuring the Economy, with a planned duration of two to three years.

By the end of 1997, the number of agricultural and sideline product wholesale markets nationwide had grown to approximately 4,000, forming a stable “Shopping Basket” market system centered on hub wholesale markets and connecting production bases with retail markets.

In 1998, the Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Agriculture and Rural Work, adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 15th CPC Central Committee, stated that the production of “Shopping Basket” products should promote quality varieties, reduce costs, improve efficiency, achieve balanced supply, and strive to develop nationally recognized agricultural brands.

In September 1999, the 12th Experience Exchange Conference on “Shopping Basket” Production-Sales System Reform among 10 major cities revealed that domestic supply-demand conditions had shifted from long-term shortages to basic balance with surplus in good years — marking the program’s entry into a new phase of development.

On November 17, 2000, the National Exchange Conference on “Shopping Basket” Production-Sales System Reform set the major goals for the program in the early 21st century: centering on optimizing structure, improving product quality, and increasing farmers’ incomes; with deepening reform, expanding opening-up, and accelerating agricultural modernization as drivers; achieving coordinated development between the “Shopping Basket Program” and the ecological environment; and striving to improve the quality of life of both urban and rural residents.

In April 2001, the Ministry of Agriculture launched the “Pollution-Free Food Action Plan” — an initiative focused on improving agricultural product quality and ensuring consumption safety. Using “Shopping Basket” products as the entry point and market access as the key lever, and addressing both production areas and markets, the plan aimed to achieve pollution-free production and consumption of major agricultural products within 8 to 10 years through full-process quality and safety control from farm to table.

In July 2002, officials from the State Economic and Trade Commission announced that the “Three-Green Project” had made smooth progress with phased results. The “Three-Green Project” promotes green consumption, fosters green markets, and opens green channels to improve food quality and protect consumer interests. Its implementation further strengthened the nationwide “Shopping Basket” sanitation and quality safety inspection system, building multiple lines of food safety defense and effectively preventing harmful food from entering the market.

Phase Three (2000–2009)

This period marked a phase of rapid development and heightened focus on agricultural product safety.

In September 1999, 10 major cities held the 12th National Experience Exchange Conference on the “Shopping Basket Program” Production-Sales System Reform, formally announcing that the domestic supply-demand situation had shifted from long-term shortage to basic balance. This signaled the program’s transition toward comprehensive quality-focused development.

In April 2001, the Ministry of Agriculture began implementing the Pollution-Free Agricultural Product Action Plan, extending it nationwide and establishing large-scale pollution-free production bases in rural areas. Over this decade, the Ministry of Agriculture assessed that China had entered a fundamentally pollution-free product era — Beijing, for example, announced as early as 2005 that 96% of its meat, vegetable, and fruit products were pollution-free.

From 2000 to 2009, “Shopping Basket” product output expanded rapidly. The homogenization of products and growing concerns about quality made “difficulty in selling” and “quality issues” major social focal points. Against this backdrop, “vegetable gardens” gradually shifted from traditional production bases toward pollution-free bases, and direct farm-to-supermarket procurement became routine. Wholesale markets underwent continuous upgrades and renovations, accelerating the conversion of mobile vendors into permanent retailers and progressively refining the organizational division of labor between production areas and markets — also becoming an important employment channel for farmers. During this phase, the number of markets grew rapidly. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, by 2009, the number of agricultural product markets with annual turnover exceeding 100 million yuan reached 946, with a total transaction volume of 910.859 billion yuan. Vegetable markets numbered 289, with transaction volumes reaching 250.922 billion yuan. Capital operations in wholesale markets also became increasingly prevalent. Taking the Shouguang Vegetable Wholesale Market Co., Ltd. in Shandong as an example, private capital entered and participated in operations in 2003, then withdrew in 2009 when a local state-owned assets supervision committee took over. This sequence of entry and exit clearly revealed the quasi-public-goods nature of “Shopping Basket” products, as well as the high degree of importance local governments attached to the industry’s development.

Phase Four (2010–Present)

In early 2010, the Central No. 1 Document emphasized the need to address institutional and mechanistic development. The key mechanism was the company-plus-farmer or cooperative-plus-farmer model, with improving technological advancement as the paramount goal.

In 2015, the Ministry of Agriculture (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs) issued the National Agricultural Product Origin Market Development Program, promoting the ongoing development of logistics and cold-chain infrastructure. Both agricultural product distribution/cold-chain companies and wholesale markets went public as listed companies, marking the transition of wholesale markets into capitalized logistics parks.

In January 2017, the General Office of the State Council issued the Assessment Measures for the Mayoral Accountability System for the “Shopping Basket Program”, ensuring that intensive, facility-based, large-scale, and standardized production aimed at improving quality and guaranteeing supply was effectively implemented, with product certification becoming increasingly widespread.

In 2019, the total transaction volume of agricultural product markets with annual turnover exceeding 100 million yuan reached 1,978.531 billion yuan, with vegetable market transactions reaching 387.98 billion yuan.

Since 2020, the key goals for the program have encompassed raising production levels of “Shopping Basket” products, ensuring emergency supply, improving quality and efficiency, and strengthening institutional development.

In December 2021, the General Office of the State Council issued the 14th Five-Year Plan for Cold Chain Logistics Development, proposing the preliminary formation of a cold-chain logistics network connecting production and sales areas, covering both urban and rural areas, and linking domestic and international markets.

In March 2022, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs issued the 14th Five-Year National Agricultural Product Origin Market System Development Plan, proposing the establishment of national-level agricultural product origin markets that are “accessible nationwide and world-renowned,” a network of regional agricultural product origin markets that are “fully functional and linking production to sales,” a network of farm-gate markets that “reduce losses and benefit farmers,” and the formation of a modernized three-tier agricultural product origin market system.

In 2025, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council issued the Plan for Accelerating the Construction of a Strong Agricultural Nation (2024–2035), explicitly requiring further reinforcement of the mayoral accountability system for the “Shopping Basket Program.”

Results

The “Shopping Basket Program” has now spanned 38 years. Starting from stabilizing prices and ensuring supply, and using the establishment, improvement, strengthening, and rigorous assessment of the mayoral accountability system as key leverage, the program has mobilized society-wide forces across the full chain — from production sources and capital, to markets, logistics and storage, and end consumers — to successfully build this great undertaking. The program has ultimately achieved the historic accomplishment of ensuring adequate sources, stable supply, and guaranteed terminal consumption of “Shopping Basket” products. Not only have origin markets for “Shopping Basket” products continued to expand, but prices have remained stable in cities and towns of all sizes, powerfully advancing the integration of production, supply, and sales.

A “backbone–regional–origin–import” agricultural product market system has taken basic shape. National backbone and regional agricultural product markets have progressively achieved supply coverage for dense urban clusters across the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle, Fujian-Zhejiang, and the Shenyang-Dalian-Harbin-Changchun corridor. A three-tier agricultural product origin market system — with national-level origin markets as the flagship, regional origin markets as nodes, and farm-gate markets as the foundation — has gradually taken shape. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China built 33 national-level agricultural product origin markets, designated 663 Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs-certified wholesale markets, and added more than 98 million cubic meters of cold storage capacity at production sites.