Corn modernization takes root, yields high (2)

Gu received a bumper harvest as China, the world's second-biggest corn consumer, worked to up its efficiency in corn cultivation. The country's growing appetite for meat has boosted imports of corn -- the main feed for livestock. But its own corn yields per unit only equate to 60 percent of those reaped in the U.S. midwest.

Wang Lichun, a researcher with Jilin Academy of Agricultural sciences, headed the project that involved Gu's farm. Wang's team, sponsored by the state, has been working on new seed variety Limin 33 for eight years.

The researcher's technicians also helped farmers set up a trickle irrigation system and paid regular visits to apply fertilizers and pesticides with professional equipment.

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