Journal of Energy Bioscience 2025, Vol.16, No.4, 172-181 http://bioscipublisher.com/index.php/jeb 173 2 Energy Crop Development in China: Background and Policy Context 2.1 National energy strategy China's energy structure has always been dominated by coal. With the continuous development of the economy and the growing population, the demand for energy is also increasing. This has also brought about energy security issues and greater environmental pressure. In order to reduce the impact of climate change, China has proposed the goals of "carbon peak" and "carbon neutrality", and actively promoted the adjustment of energy structure and strived to increase the proportion of renewable energy use. Among various renewable energy sources, biomass energy is a very important one. It is rich in resources, renewable, and basically does not emit carbon. These characteristics make it a good choice to replace fossil energy such as coal and oil, and also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions (Wang et al., 2024). The development of biomass energy is not only helpful for carbon reduction, but also protects the ecological environment and enhances energy security (Sang and Zhu, 2011; Wang et al., 2024). 2.2 Policy support for biogas and bioenergy The Chinese government has always attached great importance to the development of bioenergy and has issued many relevant policies. The Renewable Energy Law implemented in 2005 is a very important starting point. It provides legal support for the development of biomass energy and explicitly encourages the use of methods such as biogas, biopower generation, and biofuels (Wang et al., 2024). The national and local governments also promote rural biogas projects and other bioenergy construction through subsidies, tax cuts, and technical research. These policies also encourage the good use of straw, energy crops, etc. to improve utilization efficiency (Zhang and Lis, 2020; Wang et al., 2024). These practices not only promote the development of bioenergy, but also help improve the rural energy structure and increase farmers' income (Zhang and Lis, 2020). 2.3 Role of energy crops in rural development In rural China, energy crops play many important roles. First, these crops can be grown on marginal land or unused arable land, which will not affect food planting and improve land use efficiency (Wang et al., 2017; Fu et al., 2022; Wang et al., 2024). Planting energy crops can bring new sources of income to rural areas, allowing farmers to earn more and is also conducive to adjusting the agricultural structure (Zhang and Lis, 2020; Fu et al., 2022). Furthermore, the development of energy crops can also reduce straw burning, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and benefit the rural ecological environment (Sang and Zhu, 2011; Fang et al., 2024; Wang et al., 2024). When these crops are combined with renewable energy technologies such as biogas and power generation, they become a key force in promoting green and low-carbon development in rural areas (Fu et al., 2022; Fang et al., 2024; Wang et al., 2024). 3 Biogas Technology and Feedstock Dynamics 3.1 Principles of biogas production The production of biogas mainly relies on a technology called "anaerobic digestion" (AD). This process is carried out in the absence of oxygen, and microorganisms decompose organic matter and finally produce gases such as methane and carbon dioxide. This decomposition process is generally divided into several stages, including hydrolysis, acidification, acetic acid production and methane production. In the end, not only usable biogas can be obtained, but also a "digestion residue" can be obtained, which can be used as fertilizer (Catherine and Twizerimana, 2022; Montoro et al., 2025) (Figure 1). This technology can process a lot of agricultural waste, such as feces, straw, kitchen waste, etc. It can not only reduce environmental pollution, but also turn waste into energy and resources, realizing "turning waste into treasure" (Zhang et al., 2015; Liu et al., 2023). 3.2 Common feedstocks in China In rural China, the raw materials used to produce biogas are mainly some common agricultural wastes, such as cow dung, pig dung, corn stalks and kitchen garbage (Zhang et al., 2015; Li et al., 2021; Liu et al., 2023). Among them, livestock and poultry manure is more common, mainly because it contains a lot of organic matter and is easier to decompose. However, the source of this type of raw material is affected by the scale of breeding and the
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