China to crack down on counterfeit agricultural materials

A crackdown will be launched to prevent the production and sale of counterfeit seeds, pesticide, fertilizer and other agricultural production materials, the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said Monday. The campaign, to be carried out by nine government departments, is aimed at safeguarding farmers' rights and securing grain production, the MOA said in an online statement. A similar campaign launched in 2012 resulted in the confiscation of 33,000 tonnes of fake or substandard agricultural production materials, according to the statement. The statement also called for cooperative efforts among relevant authorities to strengthen supervision over agricultural production materials.