Henan Province ranked first in China in grain production with the output hitting 42.6 million tons in 2004, up 19.3 percent from the previous year, the local statistics department announced Wednesday in Zhengzhou.

The grain output of Henan accounts for one-tenth of the national total, serving as the country's largest contributor, said an official of the Henan Provincial Agricultural Department.

The summer grain output surged 7.9 percent on a year-on-year basis to reach 25.2 million tons last year, while the autumn output soared 41 percent to 17.39 million tons, despite severe natural disasters.

The official attributed the increased grain output to a series of policies taken by the central government to promote agricultural production These included the establishment of fine wheat strain production bases, higher input in agriculture, a rigid system to protect farmland from utilization for non-agriculture purpose and implementation of high and new technology.

Source: Xinhua