This monograph一The International Competitiveness of China’s Agricultural Products—compiled by Dr．Weng Ming，takes as its subject the competitiveness of China’s agricultural products，analyzing the competitiveness of such major farm

products as grain，vegetables，fruit，meat，cotton，tea and peanuts．This book is a further work on competitiveness by Dr．Weng Ming following his Study on China’s Agricultural Competitiveness，published in 2003．

Competitiveness is the decisive force for the survival and development of a11 countries in the age of economic globalization．and also a hot issue in the field of economics．The theoretical study of competitiveness in China is badly lagging

behind the needs of actual social and economic development．Particularly since China’s entry into the WTO．Chinese agriculture is facing direct competition in both domestic and international markets．and thus is in urgent need of high—level

works systematically expounding the theory of agricultural competitiveness and explaining the competitiveness of China’s agricultural products and the factors affecting it．However, because theoretical research on competitiveness in China started later than other fields，and because statistics on agriculture and agricultural products are incomplete, the relevant research is deficient．So far, very little has been published on the subject；the publication of this book is，therefore，of great significance both for practice and for theory．

Dr．Weng Ming is a new but outstanding expert in China，engaged in research on the competitiveness of agricultural products, and one of the few Chinese scholars compiling monographs in this field．Study on China j Agricultural Competitiveness was highly praised by experts in China’s academic circles，and won acclaim from scholars in foreign countries and Taiwan．In 2004，the book won the second prize (the first prize being vacant)at the Sixth National Award for Achievements in Foreign Economic and Trade Research sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce．

Following the publishing advice of Foreign Languages Press，Dr．Weng Ming made many adjustments to the structure and contents of the original Study on China’s Agricultural Competitiveness， and，abiding by the usual practice of academic research in Western countries, he has organized the research and case evidence along major themes of the agricultural industry and agricultural products；the result is this new work．

Communication is essential for academic research．Since communication can promote development．It is my belief that this English-language book will help foreign scholars and friends deepen their understanding of China’s agriculture and its products．We are willing to open up deeper discussion and research with more foreign scholars and friends on the international competitiveness of China’s agricultural products，so as to meet the challenges of economic globalization．

Zhang Xiaoshan

Director of the Rural Development Institute

                               Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

               September 18，2005