Free-range black pigs root their way to wealth

In March, across the land of the Greater Khingan Range, the winter snow has not yet melted and the temperature is still fairly low, but the black pig breeding base of the Heilongjiang Greater Khingan Range Regional Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, far from the busy city and deep in the mountains, is bustling with activity. Nearly a thousand black pigs roam freely on the mountain every day, feeding on green grass and grain; now chasing one another, now playing together, they leave strings of hoofprints in the snow as they run.

"Today, free-range, naturally raised black pigs are increasingly loved by consumers because their meat is delicious, safe and healthy." Chou Youcai, a production technology manager conducting routine checks on piglets, told reporters that the black pigs bred at the base are held to strict standards in breed selection, growing environment and diet. Following the pigs' habits of rooting in the soil and basking in the sun, the mountain site is divided into several areas, creating a special rotational grazing and free-range raising method. Using a formula feed developed in-house with corn as the main ingredient, the base raises the black pigs in pens for 4 months and free-range under the forest for 6 to 8 months, so that they enjoy the winds of all four seasons, drink spring water from the mountains and eat the hundred grasses of the forest, achieving meat that is tender, firm and fine in texture; the fresh meat has clear marbling and snowflake patterns, is fatty but not greasy, and is rich in nutrients, with higher levels of various vitamins and trace elements than ordinary pen-raised pigs. At present, the breeds introduced at the base include Northeast Min pig, Songliao Black, Duroc, Berkshire and others, and applications have been filed to register the black pork brands "Linxiang Minye" and "Yusen Minye", with efforts focused on building a high-end meat market.

Reporters learned that the base has now built more than 2,000 sq m of fully equipped pig housing, more than 2,000 sq m of exercise yards for breeding pigs and a 140,000 sq m free-range area. It currently has 1,000 black pigs on hand and 100 sows, and can provide about 2,000-plus piglets each year. It has become the largest base in the Greater Khingan Range for conserving the Northeast Min pig and breeding forest pigs. On the market, one kilogram of black pork sells for about 30 yuan, and it is much favored by consumers. Two stores already specialize in selling Minye black pork, and market prospects are broad.

Huang Chao, deputy director of the animal husbandry research office of the regional Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, told reporters that in order to find black pig breeds better suited to free-range raising under the forest, the academy has joined with domestic universities and colleges to breed two-way and three-way crossbreeds such as Dumin, Dubamin and Bamin, taking advantage of the Northeast Min pig's tolerance of coarse feed, strong reproductive capacity and strong disease resistance. They have selected high-quality black pig breeds suited to free-range raising under the forest in the Greater Khingan Range and worked out a complete set of under-forest free-range raising techniques, providing farmers with excellent piglets and reference raising techniques, and guiding farmers in scientific feed formulas and scientific free-range raising, which can both make good use of local under-forest and crop-growing resources and greatly increase practitioners' incomes. Next, through standardized operation, they will build an integrated "production-education-research" demonstration base, drive farmers with the right conditions to take up forest pig farming, and lead and drive the great development of the region's entire breeding industry.

The black pig breeding base of the Greater Khingan Range Regional Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences is bustling with activity. Nearly a thousand black pigs roam freely on the mountain every day, feeding on green grass and grain; now chasing one another, now playing together, they leave strings of hoofprints in the snow as they run.

"Today, free-range, naturally raised black pigs are increasingly loved by consumers because their meat is delicious, safe and healthy." Chou Youcai, a production technology manager conducting routine checks on piglets, told reporters that the black pigs bred at the base are held to strict standards in breed selection, growing environment and diet. Following the pigs' habits of rooting in the soil and basking in the sun, the mountain site is divided into several areas, creating a special rotational grazing and free-range raising method. Using a formula feed developed in-house with corn as the main ingredient, the base raises the black pigs in pens for 4 months and free-range under the forest for 6 to 8 months, so that they enjoy the winds of all four seasons, drink spring water from the mountains and eat the hundred grasses of the forest, achieving meat that is tender, firm and fine in texture; the fresh meat has clear marbling and snowflake patterns, is fatty but not greasy, and is rich in nutrients, with higher levels of various vitamins and trace elements than ordinary pen-raised pigs. At present, the breeds introduced at the base include Northeast Min pig, Songliao Black, Duroc, Berkshire and others, and applications have been filed to register the black pork brands "Linxiang Minye" and "Yusen Minye", with efforts focused on building a high-end meat market.

Reporters learned that the base has now built more than 2,000 sq m of fully equipped pig housing, more than 2,000 sq m of exercise yards for breeding pigs and a 140,000 sq m free-range area. It currently has 1,000 black pigs on hand and 100 sows, and can provide about 2,000-plus piglets each year. It has become the largest base in the Greater Khingan Range for conserving the Northeast Min pig and breeding forest pigs. On the market, one kilogram of black pork sells for about 30 yuan, and it is much favored by consumers. Two stores already specialize in selling Minye black pork, and market prospects are broad.

Huang Chao, deputy director of the animal husbandry research office of the regional Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, told reporters that in order to find black pig breeds better suited to free-range raising under the forest, the academy has joined with domestic universities and colleges to breed two-way and three-way crossbreeds such as Dumin, Dubamin and Bamin, taking advantage of the Northeast Min pig's tolerance of coarse feed, strong reproductive capacity and strong disease resistance. They have selected high-quality black pig breeds suited to free-range raising under the forest in the Greater Khingan Range and worked out a complete set of under-forest free-range raising techniques, providing farmers with excellent piglets and reference raising techniques, and guiding farmers in scientific feed formulas and scientific free-range raising, which can both make good use of local under-forest and crop-growing resources and greatly increase practitioners' incomes. Next, through standardized operation, they will build an integrated "production-education-research" demonstration base, drive farmers with the right conditions to take up forest pig farming, and lead and drive the great development of the region's entire breeding industry.