Hunger Breeds Discontent. This idiom represents perhaps the most frequently used idiom governing the state of affairs in China. Since its inception, the Government of China has considered food security to be a top priority in attaining social order and stability.
Arable farmland is, of course, the essential prerequisite.
Recent years, however, have witnessed a significant loss in the nation's arable land. Between 1956 to 1995, China's productive land decreased from 111.9 to 94.91 million hectares, according to China's Statistics Year Book. Today, China's total arable land, which accounts for 9.88 percent of the nation's total land area, is 50 percent of that in the United States. China's arable land per capita is 0.08 hectares, 8.7 percent of the world's average and 40 percent of India's. The primary causes for the reduction in cultivated land in China are industrialization and urbanization, soil erosion and desertification.