It seems no matter how carefully China's farmers plan their planting schedules, most never benefit from the rising market prices of their goods.

This is primarily because China's agricultural industry is filled with a seemingly endless variety of middlemen, agents, traders and merchants who jack up the prices of farm goods along every step of the convoluted distribution system that leads from farmers' fields to the plates of urban consumers.

This situation will never change unless the country's agricultural cooperative associations can win the support of the government. Central and local leaders need to promote policies which bridge the information gap between farmers and urban consumers. In many cases, farmers have little or no idea how much their goods are worth in the market, leaving the door open for merchants to profit heavily from the fruits of farm labor.

Authorities should also make it easier for farm cooperatives to gain a larger foothold in the market.

The author is Bi Ge, a commentator.