From May 21 to August 16, Dr. Kaiyu Lv and Dr. Jingfei Qian went to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington, DC, for short-term training and collaborative research. The academic exchange focused on acknowledging and learning research fruit and mythology of the institute in regional agricultural economics.
　　　During the academic exchange, Dr Kaiyu Lv cooperated with Dr Alan de Brauw and senior researcher Xinshen Diao of the International Food Policy Research Institute, through using farmer survey data and arable land historical data, investigated the relationship between arable land change and its quality. The results are different depending on different regions. On the one hand, there is a certain correlation between the increase of the proportion of agricultural land and the decline of soil quality in some areas. That is, the soil quality is likely to be affected. On the other hand, there is also a worrying relationship between the farmland proportion change and soil quality in some areas, that is, the more farmland is declining and the lower quality the arable farm will become. Meanwhile, there is also an exciting positive effect, that is, with the farmland flow, the quality of arable land may also be improved.
　　　Dr Qian worked with senior researcher Dr. Mateusz Filipski of IFPRI. They conducted analysis of the effect farmland resource and quality exerting on rice production outsourcing through the investigated data of Guangxi rice farmers. Their research outcome can be concluded as following:Firstly, the scale of cultivated land will make farmers more inclined to outsource in such labor-intensive areas such as land preparation, harvesting. And also it will increase the possibility of outsourcing in any link of rice production. Secondly, the better farmland fertility will enable farmers to increase the number of outsourcing during production. Thirdly, due to the outsourcing cost, the expansion of farmland production will decrease the possibility of outsourcing in frequent sectors such as watering, thus reduces the number of outsourcing during the whole production process.
　　　During the cooperative training, Dr. Lv and Dr. Qian also participated in a number of academic exchanges organized by various departments of the International Food Policy Research Institute. They also actively took part in various academic researches on different topics and content and studied and communicated with researchers of IFPRI. In the field of farmland, agricultural machinery, agricultural risk and insurance, food nutrition, labor transfer, agricultural system, poverty and etc, they conducted extensive exchanges and in-depth discussion, and reached later research framework. During the exchange, the two scholars also discussed with the World Bank and the US Department of Agriculture related personnel on the intention of cooperation on poverty and agricultural productivity as well as other aspects of cooperative research.
　　　Through academic training exchanges, the two scholars enhanced the methods and skills in agricultural economy research, expanded study ideas and vision in the field of international agriculture research, built a platform for exchanges and cooperation with international counterparts. The exchange program was included in the annual plan of the International Training Program of the International Cooperation Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and was supported by the International Food Policy Research Institute, the Innovation and Rural Development of the Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. It was also sponsored by Market and trade policy “innovation team”.