With grain output reaching more than 17.5 billion kilograms in 2014, the city of Harbin in Northeast China’s Heilongjiang province has topped the list of grain production cities for three years in succession, Harbin Daily reported on Dec 31.

The districts of Shuangcheng and Hulan; the county-level cities of Wuchang and Shangzhi; and the counties of Bayan, Yilan and Binxian of the city were also listed as major grain-producing counties in China by the Ministry of Agriculture.

Thanks to 2.3 billion yuan ($370.3 million) in investment in agriculture in the last two years, agricultural parks in Harbin have been upgraded significantly.

The area of the modern agricultural demonstration zone has doubled to 10.16 million mu (677,000 hectares) in 2014, accounting for one-third of the total arable land in the city.

According to Harbin agricultural commission’s plan, by next year agricultural plantations in Harbin will be guided by leading national and advanced international standards. The expansion of the high-yield plantation approach will increase the average corn output by 300 kilograms per mu. The application of organic and green cultivation methods in rice paddy plantations will enable an economic benefit of more than 2,000 yuan per mu, up 1,000 yuan from traditional modes.