Diets have changed in China — and so too has its top crop. Since 2011, the country {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(grow) more corn than rice. Corn production has jumped nearly 125 percent over {#blank#}2{#/blank#} past 25 years, while rice has increased only 7 percent.

    A taste for meat is {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (actual) behind the change: An important part of its corn is used to feed chickens, pigs, and cattle. Another reason for corn's rise: The government encourages farmers to grow corn instead of rice {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (improve) water quality. Corn uses less water {#blank#}5{#/blank#} rice and creates less fertilizer(化肥) runoff. This switch has decreased {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (pollute) in the country's major lakes and reservoirs and made drinking water safer for people.

    According to the World Bank, China accounts for about 30 percent of total {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (globe)fertilizer consumption. The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture finds that between 2005—when the government {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (start) a soil-testing program {#blank#}9{#/blank#} gives specific fertilizer recommendations to farmers - and 2011, fertilizer use dropped by 7.7 million tons. That prevented the emission(排放) of 51.8 million tons of carbon dioxide. China's approach to protecting its environment while {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (feed) its citizens "offers useful lessons for agriculture and food policymakers worldwide." says the bank's Juergen Voegele.