China Agriculture View

In Chinese the word for alcohol “jiu” is used to mean all types of alcoholic beverages, from ‘pijiu’ (beer) to liquors (just called ‘jiu’) to grape wine (’putao jiu’).Even in modern China alcoholic beverages are generally classed by the general population by how much intoxication it delivers for the money.

In ancient China, since alcohol was regarded as a sacred liquid it was only used when people made sacrificial offerings to Heaven, Earth or significant ancestors. After the Zhou Dynasty, alcohol was deemed as one of the Nine Rites and every Dynasty since, placed heavy emphasis on alcohol administration, setting up special ministries to manage alcohol production and banqueting. Later, along with the development of zymotechnics and brewery, alcohol became much more of an ordinary, everyday drink. Thus, many of the daily customs involving alcohol evolved.

Ordinary Chinese people today have always just used alcohol to help them celebrate the happiness in their lives. In China, a banquet known as “Jiu Xi” means an alcohol banquet and the life of every person, from birth to death, should have pauses for drinking banquets starting a month or 100 days after a baby’s birth when the parents invite people in for a drink. When someone builds a new house, marries, starts a business, makes a fortune or lives a long life, he should invite people in for a drinking session. In modern times it is a pity that the games that go with drinking are not the elegant ones of the past that involved poetry or music. Today, drinkers just play simple finger-guessing games along with a lot of heavy drinking. It also seems today that friendship depends only on the volume of drink being consumed. “If we are good friends, then bottoms up; if not, then just take a sip” is a common phrased exchanged during gatherings.

Famous Chinese liquors, wines

Fen jiu – this wine was dated back to Northern and Southern Dynasties (550 A.D.). It is the original Chinese white wine made from sorghum. Alcohol content by volume: 63-65%.
Mao Tai jiu – this wine has a production history of over 200 years. It is named after its origin at Mao Tai town in Guizhou Province. It is make from wheat and sorghum with a unique distilling process that involves seven iterations of the brewing cycle. This wine is made famous to the western world when the Chinese government served this in state banquets entertaining the US presidents. Alcohol content by volume: 54-55%.
Gao Liang jiu – Goa Liang is the Chinese name for sorghum. Besides sorghum, the brewing process also use barley, wheat etc. The wine was originated from DaZhiGu since the Ming Dynasty. Nowadays, Taiwan is a large producer of gao liang jiu. Alcohol content by volume: 61-63%. Mei Gui Lu jiu (rose essence wine) – a variety of gao liang jiu with distill from a special species of rose and crystal sugar. Alcohol content by volume: 54-55%.

Yuk Bing Shiu jiu – a rice wine with over 100 year history. It is made of steamed rice. It is stored a long period after distillation. Alcohol content by volumne: 30%.
Sheung Jing (double distill) and San Jing (triple distill) Jiu – two varieties of rice wine by distilling twice and three times respectively. Alcohol content by volume: 32% and 38-39% respectively.

This series of pepper’ photos were taken by Chen Yi works as a civil servant It took the photographer three months in 2003 to finish this group called ”Life”.

BEIJING, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) — The quality of China’s agricultural produce including vegetables, domestic animals and aquatics was improved in 2009, the Ministry of Agriculture said Monday.

The ministry released an annual report based on monitoring results of agricultural products, saying 96.4 percent of vegetables had met safety standards in 2009, up 0.1 percentage points year on year.

The rate was 99.5 percent for domestic animals, up 0.8 percentage points, and 97.2 percent for aquatic products, up 1.5 percentage points.

The monitoring of fruits, mushrooms and tea, for the first time in 2009, found 98 percent, 95.2 percent, and 94.8 percent of products in the three categories met standards.

In 2009, the inspections became more detailed, covered more categories, and were carried out in 259 large and medium-sized cities, compared with only 36 major cities previously, the ministry said.

The ministry said it would step up the control over the use of prohibited pesticides and veterinary drugs in 2010 in order to further improve the quality and safety of agricultural produce.

BERLIN, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) — As climate change poses a great challgenge to China’s agricultural sector, the government and farmers should tackle it in a scientific and systematic way, Chinese Vice Minister of Agriculture Niu Dun said in an interview with Xinhua.

Climate change has posed great threats to the traditional farming sector, and extreme weather events, such as droughts, floods, hailstorm, tropical storms, have ruined harvests far more often than before, Niu said.

He was in Berlin to attend the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture, held during the 75th International Green Week in Berlin, the world’s largest agricultural and food fair.

“The destructive power of climate change has reminded us of theneed to view the issue with a multi-dimensional perspective,” he said. “We should tackle the challenges by renewing the agricultural system and continuously developing the country’s economy.”

The Chinese government would help farmers, herdsmen and fishermen create a sustainable mode of production by applying new technologies with lower costs and lower emissions, Niu said.

“The government will intensify investment of agricultural infrastructure and projects and impart more scientific knowledge and climate-friendly concepts to farmers,” the vice-minister said.

“We want to build a comprehensive service system in the rural areas to offer multi-facet assistance to agriculture, such as providing peasants with quality seeds, machinery and advanced technologies,” he said.

All these could help cut down losses caused by climate change and improve rural living standards, Niu said.

Despite unfavorable weather conditions and the international financial crisis, China’s total grain yield was expected to hit a record high of 530.8 billion kg in 2009, the sixth consecutive year of growth. The per capita annual net income of Chinese farmers has exceeded 5,000 yuan (735 U.S. dollars), up more than 6percent from 2008, according to the latest data.

At the forum, Niu rejected accusations that China blocked a deal last month at the Copenhagen climate change conference. “China has set the new target of cutting carbon dioxide emissions per unit of the GDP by 40-45 percent by 2020 from the 2005 level,”he told 50-plus foreign agriculture ministers.

“Above all, it was not conditional or linked with commitments by any other countries,” he said.

Under the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities in addressing climate change, “China has demonstrated its highly responsible attitude towards the international community and future generations,” the Chinese official said.

Some 1,600 exhibitors from 56 countries were taking part in the10-day annual fair, showcasing their best farm produce, livestock,farm machines, garden tools and newly-developed technologies.

Niu told Xinhua that attending the forum offered a chance to “broaden our vision about new trends of modern agriculture.”

China’s grain enterprises purchased 287.6 million tons of grain from peasants in 2009, effectively stabilizing domestic grain prices and protecting farmers’ interests, said head of the State Administration of Grain Nie Zhenbang Monday.

China had raised minimum purchase prices for wheat and rice again in 2009, by 13 to 17 percent, to add income for farmers, said Nie at a national meeting in Beijing.

The measure of minimum purchase prices increased peasants’ income by about 40 billion yuan ($5.86 billion) last year, he said.

Administration figures showed State-run grain enterprises bought 163.2 million tons of grain last year.

The Administration has been promoting reforms among State-run grain enterprises and reported 18,163 State-run grain enterprises by the end of 2009, down 65 percent from 1998.

BEIJING, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) — China’s grain yield this year is expected to hit a record high of 530.8 billion kilograms, which would represent the sixth consecutive year of output growth, said a statement released on Monday after the conclusion of the Central Conference on Rural Work.

China Organic Agriculture, a company headquartered in the Liaoning province in China engaged in the trading and distribution of agricultural products, has entered into an agreement to acquire 60% of the stock of Changbai Eco-Beverage for RMB70m or $10.25m. The closing is expected in March of 2010.

Changbai is a producer and distributor of blueberry product, located in Jilin Province of China. Changbai produces around one hundred blueberry related products, including soft drinks, health care products and honey mixed products.

Changbai currently distributes its products within three provinces in northeastern China and plans to expand into other regions over the next two years. The company said that upon completion of this acquisition, it will utilize China Organic Agriculture’s countrywide sales network, and is expected that as a result of this acquisition, it will be able to expand its market more rapidly than originally anticipated, thus increasing both its brand awareness across China and its revenues.

Li Jinsong, CEO of China Organic Agriculture’s, said: “We believe that the opportunities in the blueberry industry are enormous as blueberry based products will become increasingly in demand in China with the growing interest in healthy food alternatives.

“Now that we have an agreement, assuming the satisfactory conclusion of our financial and legal due diligence, and receipt of all necessary government approvals, China Organic Agriculture’s distribution network and broader-based relationships will enable Changbai to expand its business and more quickly penetrate this growing market with this promising beverage and product group.”

Over the last ten years, the Chinese swine industry has been rapidly expanding, with the support of local and international investors who have recognized the profit potential. The U.S. Grains Council has been working closely with local producers through the industry expansion, aiding in not only feed ration advising, but also in helping produce a model for modern facilities and management.

USGC Consultant Dr. Steve Pohl and Jason Yan, USGC technical program director in China, met with representatives of Besun Group, a Chinese swine producer, two years ago as they were in search of guidance in building a 20,000-sow operation. With Dr. Pohl and the Council’s expertise, the Besun Group was able to follow an outline for an efficient facility. The Council has continued its support of the operation, offering guidance with further details in managing the facility and employees.

“Besun Group is now finishing four of its seven planned 3,000-sow farms in the Shaanxi Province. The building style and pig flow model has become a model for other companies planning expansion in China,” said USGC Senior Director in China Cary Sifferath, noting more than 20 large swine operations have visited Besun Group for firsthand looks at their facilities.

With the expansion of the industry comes a need for an increased amount of feed ingredients. This week, Council Consultant Dr. Ken Stalder traveled to China to meet with swine producers, offering his expertise in swine management and nutrition. Dr. Stalder focused on genetic improvement, selection methods and the economic benefits to such techniques.