China’s “desert wheat farms” have survived repeated sandstorms and continue to grow following an initial trial in the country’s largest desert, as part of an ongoing effort to combat desertification and unlock the land’s potential for strengthening national food security.
Two years ago, on the fringes of the Taklamakan Desert in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, China launched an unprecedented project to plant wheat in sand.
The first harvest, covering 400 hectares (988 acres) on the desert’s southwestern edge, proved a landmark achievement. Since then, sustained efforts across various desert locations have enabled crops to withstand harsh conditions, while reducing the labour required as the planting area expands.
In Kunyu, a county-level city on the southern edge of the Taklamakan, the latest wheat crop – planted across more than 8,200 mu, or about 547 hectares – has maintained a greening and seedling-survival rate of over 90 per cent, according to a People’s Daily report in early April.
Farm managers in the region have implemented highly automated irrigation technology known as a “pivot sprinkler system”, featuring multiple suspended showerhead-like nozzles.
Once the settings are calibrated and fertiliser is supplied, the system requires minimal human oversight. “Where 30 people were once required, now only four are needed,” Cui Gangchuang, the field manager, was quoted as saying.
The project has had its challenges. When Cui’s agricultural company took over the land in 2024, the site consisted of little more than rolling sand dunes.
