Chinese Government Admits One-Fifth Of Country's Farmland Is Polluted

BEIJING (AP) - China's government says in a report that nearly one-fifth of the country's farmland is polluted, mostly from yearslong accumulations of toxins from factories, mining and agriculture.

The report raises sharp concerns about the country's food safety after years of unbridled industrialization.

Results of a nationwide survey of soil samples taken from 2005 through last year show contamination in 16.1 percent of the country's soil overall and 19.4 percent of its arable land.

More than 80 percent of the pollution is the result of inorganic toxins, with the top three identified as cadmium, nickel and arsenic.

The results were released jointly by China's Environmental Protection Ministry and its Land and Resources Ministry.