BEIJING -- President Xi Jinping has underscored the exemplary role of large-scale grain growers in encouraging more farmers to contribute to the country's food security.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks Monday in a letter replying to Xu Congxiang, a veteran grain farmer in Taihe county, East China's Anhui province.

Xi said he is pleased to learn that Xu has reaped a bumper wheat harvest and Xu's offspring have followed in his footsteps to work in agriculture.

Noting that people will feel assured when having an ample supply of food, Xi said he has always paid close attention to grain production.

In recent years, the CPC Central Committee has rolled out a slew of policies to support grain production, aiming to make sure the Chinese people hold their rice bowls firmly in their own hands, and farmers earn tangible benefits and make their lives better, Xi said in the letter.

Xi expressed the hope that large-scale grain growers can leverage the advantages of scale operation, actively apply modern agricultural technologies and encourage small-scale farmers to contribute to the country's food security by expanding grain production and improving grain quality.

Xu recently wrote Xi to report his experience of growing grain and efforts to help villagers get rid of poverty in the past 10-plus years.

Xu has been keen on studying agriculture science and technologies. He became a large-scale grain grower and won several national honors after setting up an agricultural cooperative in 2010. Xi learned about local wheat planting from Xu and other villagers during his visit to Xu's village in April 2011.