Rural consumption patterns differ from those in the cities. As markets develop in rural areas, consumption will diversify. Across Asia, as countries have urbanized, the composition of the diet and behavior of consumers have changed dramatically. Urban dwellers consume less grain and demand more meat, milk products, and fish than their rural counterparts, even after accounting for differences in income and prices. China's urban population has grown from 19.4 percent in 1980 to 27.6 percent in 1992.
Sharp transitions are also under way on the supply side.
While one-time institutional reforms contributed to the high growth in China's agricultural economy in the early 1980s, technology has been the main engine of agricultural growth in China. China's technological base grew rapidly before and during the reform period. For example, a breakthrough in hybrid rice, pioneered by Chinese scientists in the 1970s, increased yields significantly in many parts of the country and spread to nearly one-half of China's rice area by 1990. Robust investment in research has in part been responsible for these dramatic changes. However, there is concern that China's research system may now be suffering from neglect.