Decoding the relationship between farmland transfer and crop diversity: Insights from China

Farmland transfer has become a cornerstone of sustainable agricultural development, addressing labor shortages while ensuring food production in rural areas. However, the existing research largely focuses on its benefits, often overlooking its potential downside-reducing crop diversity, and the driving mechanisms also remain poorly understood. To bridge this gap, we explored the mechanisms behind how farmland transfer impacted crop diversity across China, as well as the spatial heterogeneity, by applying a provincial time-series dataset from 2006 to 2021. By combining trend analysis with a two-way fixed effects model, our study unveils a compelling narrative: contrary to conventional findings, farmland transfer is significantly negatively associated with crop diversity. Specifically, a 1 % increase in the transfer rate corresponds to a 0.42 % decline in crop diversity. The reduction is achieved by increased use of large and medium agricultural machinery, expanded subsidized crop planting, and enhanced agricultural specialization. Additionally, the negative effect is more pronounced in provinces characterized by low-relief and slow-developing. Given the negative effects of farmland transfer, rational utilization and subsidy policies are recommended for the government to promote agricultural sustainability.