The implications of climate change for agriculture and food are global concerns, and they are very important for China, The country depends on an agricultural system which has evolved over thousands of years to intensively exploit environmental conditions. The pressures on the resource base are accentuated by the prospect of climate change, This paper synthesizes information from a variety of studies on Chinese agriculture and climate. Historical studies document the impacts of past climate changes and extremes, and the types of adjustments which have occurred, the vulnerability of Chinese agriculture to climate change, Climate change scenarios are assessed relative to the current distribution of agro-climatic regions and systems, Notwithstanding the enhancing effects of warming and elevated CO2 levels, expected moisture deficits and uncertain changes in the timing and frequency of critical conditions indicate that there are serious threats to the stability and adaptability of China's food production system. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd
