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The rice planting area has significantly increased in the northeastern provinces of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang, he said.

"More guidelines, such as those about selecting seeds according to the consequences of climate change, will benefit farmers," he said.

A research project, looking at root and tuber crops as means to ensure adequate food supplies, is under way.

The government in February signed an agreement with the International Potato Center, a Peru-based research institute, to open a major research center in Beijing.

"Part of the center's mission is to develop varieties that grow quickly and can adapt to regions throughout China," Xie Kaiyun, a leading potato scientist at the International Potato Center's Beijing office, said.

The State Council, or Cabinet, announced earlier this year that it will provide subsidies to farmers who grow high-yield seed potatoes.

"The room for increasing the production of root and tuber crops, especially potatoes, has much more potential than planting the three main crops," he said.

Potatoes' advantages include low requirements for water and land quality, and attributes that suit a country facing severe water shortages and shrinking arable land.

"The yield of improved varieties (of potato) in Yulin city, Shaanxi province, reached 75 tons a hectare," Xie said.

"It is believed an average yield of 30 tons a hectare nationwide will not be difficult."