"Improvement in wheat varieties is a continuous journey, and we want farming to be a promising endeavor for farmers," said Gao Derong, a deputy to China's 14th National People's Congress (NPC) and a researcher at an institute under the Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Gao made the remarks on Thursday at the Deputies' Corridor ahead of the opening meeting of the fourth session of the 14th NPC at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. 

Having dedicated over 30 years to wheat breeding, Gao shared his lifelong mission: "I have really only done one thing – developing high-yield, disease-resistant wheat varieties for our country."

Highlighting advancements in breeding, Gao recounted the decades-long battle against Fusarium head blight (FHB), often referred to as the "cancer" of wheat. In Jiangsu Province, where high humidity often triggers devastating outbreaks, FHB can lead to total crop failure. He mentioned a heartbreaking scene from 2012 when he saw an elderly farmer weeping silently by a field destroyed by the disease. "The tears of farmers are the driving force for us researchers to overcome challenges," he said.

To conquer this "cancer," Gao's team shifted their strategy. "We moved beyond traditional breeding models and utilized modern biotechnologies, such as molecular breeding, to 'implant' resistant genes directly into the seeds," Gao explained.

After 30 years of testing countless configurations and combinations, they developed the first variety with high resistance to FHB. The breakthrough allows farmers to use fewer pesticides while achieving higher yields. This ensures more stable harvests and has significantly reduced reliance on imports, further safeguarding China's food security.

Gao, who has dedicated his life to agricultural science at the Institute of Agricultural Sciences in Lixiahe Region in east China's Jiangsu Province, stressed that there is still much work to be done to support the people behind the harvest. For instance, the high-quality construction of high-standard farmlands needs to be further accelerated, and agricultural subsidies for farmers need to be more precise and targeted.

Moving forward, Gao said the aim is to continue increasing farmers' income and ensuring greater food security.