The dollar value of China’s total planting seed imports fell 7% in MY 2001/02 to $68.5 million. The U.S. remained China’s leading supplier of planting seed with a 30% market share, followed by Canada and Japan, with 13% each. U.S. market share is decreasing, however, and there is fierce competition in all segments.

China imports primarily vegetable seeds (40% total imports) and forage/grass seeds (40%). Most of the decline in seed imports was in vegetable seeds (down 9%). Japan, China’s largest vegetable seed supplier and whose seed exports to China consist almost entirely of vegetable seeds, saw a 34% drop in seed exports to China this year. Vegetable seed imports from the U.S. were also down. However, vegetable seed imports from Korea and the Netherlands increased substantially. China’s imports from Korea grew 24% to $3.5 million, placing Korea above the U.S. as the second largest vegetable seed supplier. MY 2001/02 vegetable seed imports from the Netherlands were up over 200% to $2.7 million.

Canada exported very little planting seed to China as recently as MY 1999/2000, but since then, Canada has seen phenomenal growth in exports of alfalfa seed to China. Seventy-eight percent of China’s seed imports from Canada by value this year were alfalfa seeds. This marketing year, China imported over $7 million of alfalfa seed from Canada, up from $5 million last year. Alfalfa seed imports from Canada account for 79% of total MY 2001/02 alfalfa seed imports and compares to $1 million in alfalfa seed imports from the U.S. Meanwhile, total alfalfa seed imports actually declined 2% this year.