With 5,000 years of history, China has a lot of tradition to draw upon as it seeks to mould its contemporary identity. Now the mythical emperor credited with inventing Chinese agriculture is being groomed for just such a role. BON's Tom Spender has more.
After tea, beer is China's most popular drink, with millions of tons of it being consumed every year. And the amber nectar could also be set to transform life in some of China's furthest-flung corners thanks to innovation in agriculture. BON's Tom Spender has more.
A new government report shows China's water is far more polluted than previously thought. Back in 2007, the government said water pollution had declined by three percent from the previous year. But according to the first national pollution census released this week, water pollution in that year was more than twice the official estimate.
The agriculture ministry had previously insisted that farms contributed only a tiny fraction of pollution in China. But according to the study, agriculture is responsible for 67 percent of phosphorus, 57 percent of nitrogen discharges and 43 percent of the nation's chemical oxygen demand, a measure for water pollution.