The gentle development of the economy is an important link to realize sustainable development in a holistic way. In recent years, due to the notable decline in the scale of exports and investment, China’s economic growth has decreased significantly, and consumption has become the main force driving economic growth. Promoting sustainable economic development is an important problem in the current development of China. In this study, the ELES model was adopted to analyze how the consumption structure is affected by the income structure among rural residents in China. The results show the following: (1) The income structure of rural residents has a significant impact on the consumption structure, and their consumption behaviors conform to the “mental accounting” hypothesis. (2) Net property income and net transfer income account for a small proportion, but marginal propensity to consume (referred to as MPC) is relatively large. Net operating income and wage income form a large proportion of disposable income with low MPC. (3) In the future, expenditures on food, tobacco, and alcohol will slow down remarkably, and more money will be spent on healthcare, transportation and communication, and housing, forming an increasing proportion of expenditures. In summary, this study suggests that scientific and effective policy measures should be issued to boost the income level of rural residents in a targeted manner, optimize the income structure, and improve the rural consumption environment, so as to comprehensively promote rural consumption.

Increasing income for grain farmers is crucial to mobilise farmers’ incentive for grain cultivation. This article, based on the survey data of 2032 wheat growers in Anhui Province, China, employs the Logit model, multinomial Logit model, and entropy balance-OLS regression method to empirically analyze the factors influencing wheat growers’ participation in agricultural industrial organization models and the impact of their participation decisions on planting returns. The research found that: (1) Wheat growers with richer resource endowments are more likely to participate in agricultural industrial organization models. Factors such as household head’s education level, training experience, quality of arable land, scale of operation, and labor endowment are crucial determinants of wheat growers’ decisions to participate in industrial organization models. (2) Participation in agricultural industrial organizations significantly enhances the net income of wheat growers. Comparatively, the income-boosting effect is more pronounced for those participating in the “household + farmer cooperatives/agricultural enterprises” model. (3) The mechanisms through which wheat growers’ participation in different agricultural industrial organization models affects their crop yields vary. The income-enhancing effects of wheat growers' participation in the “household + farmer cooperatives/agricultural enterprises” model of industrial organization primarily stem from the improvement in land productivity and market bargaining power. On the other hand, the income-enhancing effects of participation in the “household + village collective + farmer cooperatives/agricultural enterprises” model are mainly attributed to the improvement in market bargaining power. The policy implication is that priority should be given to cultivating and developing industrial organisations based on the model of “household + farmers’ co-operatives/agribusinesses” in regions where farmers are richly endowed with resources, and at the same time, the development of industrial organisations based on the model of “household + village collectives + farmers’ co-operatives/agribusinesses” should be supplemented in accordance with local conditions. At the same time, the development of “household + village collectives + farmers’ cooperatives/agribusinesses” mode is supplemented according to local conditions.

Achieving green, low-carbon, and sustainable development in the Yangtze River Basin is an important part of promoting the modernization of agriculture and rural areas. Based on the panel data of 19 provinces in the Yangtze River Basin from 2002 to 2022, this article constructed a comprehensive evaluation system for the agricultural economy–population development–ecological environment system. By using the entropy-weighted TOPSIS method and the coupling coordination degree model, the comprehensive development level and the coupling coordination status of the agricultural economy, population development, and ecological environment system in the Yangtze River Basin were quantitatively analyzed. The results show the following: (1) The comprehensive index of the agricultural economy–population development–ecological environment system in the Yangtze River Basin shows a fluctuating upward trend, with obvious regional differences, and the comprehensive level showed a trend of gradual improvement from west to east. (2) The coupling degree of the agricultural economy–population development–ecological environment system in the Yangtze River Basin exhibits a volatile characteristic, initially increasing, then decreasing, and subsequently increasing again. Overall, the trend is moving toward a tighter coupling state. (3) The coupling degree of the agricultural economy–population development–ecological environment system in the provinces of the Yangtze River Basin shows a steadily increasing trend, yet the overall coupling coordination degree is not high and remains in a barely coordinated state. Accordingly, suggestions are put forward to optimize the economic structure, improve the population quality, adhere to ecological protection, and accelerate regional linkage so as to promote the coordinated development of economic development, population growth, and ecological protection in the basin.

Based on the panel data 2009-2018 on 23 potato producing areas in China, this paper firstly analyzes the priority of each area in potato production layout, using the production concentration index (PCI). Then, the main factors affecting the PCI of potato were identified, and used to develop an evaluation index system (EIS) for production advantage. Through entropy method, the production advantage of each area in potato cultivation was evaluated, and ranked in descending order. Finally, the priority of each area in potato production layout was measured comprehensively, and a total of 11 areas were determined as priority areas. On this basis, several suggestions were put forward to optimize the production layout of potato in China: (1) The Chinese government should give priority to the following producing areas in the planning of potato production layout: Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Chongqing in Northwest China; Gansu, Shaanxi, and Qinghai in Northwest China; Hebei, and Inner Mongolia in North China; Heilongjiang in Northeast China; Hubei in the winter cropping area in the south. (2) The 11 priority areas should arrange potato production as per the local situation, during the planning of crop production layout. (3) The relevant planning departments should grasp the change trend in the producing areas of potato and other water-saving crops, identify their main producing areas, and deploy water-saving crops in dry and water-deficient, which are not suitable for rice or wheat.

Increasing grain farmers' income is essential to mobilize their enthusiasm. Based on the survey data of 2032 wheat growers in Anhui Province, China, this paper uses the Logit model, multinomial Logit model and entropy balance-OLS regression method to empirically analyze the influencing factors of wheat growers' participation in agricultural industrial organization mode and the impact of their participation in decision-making on planting income. The research found that: (1) The richer the resource endowment of wheat growers, the higher the probability of their participation in the agricultural industrial organization model. The householder's education level, training experience, family-cultivated land quality, operation scale and labour endowment are essential factors influencing the wheat growers' participation in the decision-making of industrial organization mode. (2) The participation of wheat growers in agricultural industrial organizations can significantly improve their income. In comparison, the income increase effect of industrial organizations participating in the "smallholder farmer + farmer cooperatives / agricultural enterprises" model is more obvious. (3) There are differences in the influence mechanism of wheat growers' participation in different agricultural industrial organization models on their planting income. The income growth effect of wheat growers participating in the industrial organization of "smallholder farmer + farmers cooperatives / agricultural enterprises" model mainly comes from the improvement of land productivity and market bargaining power. The income growth effect of participating in the industrial organization of "smallholder farmer + village collectives + farmers cooperatives / agricultural enterprises" model mainly comes from the improvement of market bargaining power. The policy implication is that the government should give priority to cultivating and developing the industrial organization of the "smallholder farmer + farmers cooperatives / agricultural enterprises" model in areas with rich resource endowments of farmers, and supplement the development of the "smallholder farmer + village collectives + farmers cooperatives / agricultural enterprises" model depends on different local conditions, and actively guide farmers to participate.