From the perspective of characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry development, Qinghai's value-added industrial chain approach has proven successful. Recent investigations revealed that in 2024, the province's five dominant characteristic industry clusters - yak, Tibetan sheep, rapeseed, highland barley, and goji berries - spanning livestock, grain and oil, and fruit and vegetable categories across primary, secondary, and tertiary industries, achieved a total output value exceeding 60 billion yuan.

For comparison, Qinghai Province's GDP in 2024 reached 395.08 billion yuan. This means the total output value of these five characteristic industry clusters alone accounted for over 15% of Qinghai's 2024 GDP. Considering the broader characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry sector, this proportion would be even higher.

Why do "value-added" signals continue to emerge from Qinghai?

Currently, Menyuan Hui Autonomous County in Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture has shed its golden hue and is entering the rapeseed harvest season. This was the rapeseed flower sea in Menyuan County, Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in late July.

As the homeland of northern small rapeseed, an important oil crop, Menyuan County's rapeseed cultivation history dates back to the mid-14th century. Over a decade ago, rapeseed planting area already exceeded 50% of total arable land, but challenges like lodging susceptibility, low seed yield, and low oil content long troubled local rapeseed industry development.

"Back then, many farmers growing rapeseed and pressing oil from seeds couldn't even meet their own household consumption, let alone sell for profit," recalled Yao Dongdong, Deputy General Manager of Qinghai Xiangmanjin Menyuan Grain and Oil Food Co., Ltd.

Quality seeds are key to improving rapeseed yield. In recent years, with support from institutions like Qinghai Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences and Haibei Agricultural Research Institute, Menyuan has empowered seed industry innovation through technology, overcoming breeding challenges in cold-resistance gene introduction and dwarf trait selection. The county successfully introduced, bred, and promoted new rapeseed varieties including Haoyou No. 11 and Qingyou No. 21, with Haoyou No. 11 achieving over 98% improved seed coverage.

"Our company planted Haoyou No. 11 this year, which can increase yield by about 10% compared to the previous Haoyou No. 10," Yao Dongdong said. Through a "company + cooperative + base + farmer" operational model, they established over 20,000 acres of scientific, large-scale green organic highland barley and rapeseed planting bases, effectively integrating local characteristic industrial resources.

Today, Menyuan's rapeseed planting area remains stable at one million acres, making it an important high-quality rapeseed production base in China.

The continuously strengthened production foundation exemplifies Qinghai's thriving characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry. Data released at Qinghai Province's agricultural and rural work conference in February showed that in 2024, the province's grain planting area reached 4.588 million acres with output of 1.183 million tons, a 1.7% increase from the previous year and a 26-year high. Cattle and sheep slaughter reached 9.3659 million head, while cold-water fish production reached 19,000 tons with exports of 5,529 tons - 12 times the previous year's export volume.

Beyond "stable production" and "increased production," Qinghai continues strengthening deep processing of highland agricultural and pastoral specialty products.

Entering the raw meat processing workshop of Haibei Gangcha Gongluo Agricultural and Livestock Product Development Co., Ltd., workers are busy cutting, weighing, and packaging freshly slaughtered and quarantine-approved Tibetan yaks. From a complete cattle to categorized packaged raw meat products, yaks achieve value addition in this modest-sized workshop.

Qinghai is known as the "homeland of yaks," with current yak stock consistently stable at 6 million head, accounting for about 40% of the national total and ranking first nationwide. "Previously we sold cattle by the head at per-pound prices. Now different parts have different prices. Categorized processed meat is not only easier to sell and more market-welcomed, but also brings more money," said E Zangja, head of Gongluo Company. Currently, over 60,000 pounds of meat have been sold from this company, with products reaching Shandong, Hebei and other regions.

In 2024, Guoluo Zang Gongma Village in Gangcha County established Gongluo Company with village investment, specializing in livestock deep processing and external sales. Under this village enterprise's leadership, the village's yak industry developed rapidly.

In fact, throughout Qinghai, many places focus on deep processing around characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry like yak, Tibetan sheep, and cool-climate vegetables. For example, Qilian County in Haibei Prefecture established Qinghai's first "Tibetan Sheep Industry Development Research Institute," formulating product standards and promoting scientific breeding technologies, significantly improving local Tibetan sheep quality and output.

At Xining Nanchuan Industrial Park, Qinghai Kekexili Food Co., Ltd. conducts deep processing based on yak, highland barley, goji berries and other products. Here, a yak transforms through pre-cooking, cutting, stir-frying and other processes into 13 major categories and over 400 yak meat series products including hand-shredded yak meat, yak meat granules, and yak meat sauce.

"Over seven years, through a 'farmer + cooperative + enterprise' model, we've signed breeding and sales agreements with 20,000 herding households at prices 1 to 1.5 yuan per pound above market rates," introduced Ma Wei, Administrative Manager of Kekexili Company. The company has distributed over 8 million yuan in dividends to herders.

Connecting farmers on one end and markets on the other, deep processing has won reputation for Qinghai's characteristic agricultural and pastoral products. Data from Qinghai Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs shows that by the end of June this year, the province had 1,298 certified green food, organic agricultural products, and geographical indication agricultural products, with organic grassland monitoring area reaching 335 million acres. Ten local standards were published and implemented, with 48 agricultural products included in the "National Famous, Special, High-Quality New Agricultural Products" directory.

Qinghai has set a goal: achieve over 65% agricultural and livestock product processing conversion rate this year, with agricultural product processing industry output value to total agricultural output value ratio reaching 2.4:1. To this end, Qinghai Province clearly aims to "strengthen agricultural and livestock product processing industry," specifically implementing agricultural and livestock product processing industry improvement actions, vigorously developing high-tech content, deep processing degree, and high value-added agricultural and livestock product deep processing industry, focusing on cultivating and strengthening backbone leading enterprises with high starting points, large scale, and strong driving force.

"Even good wine fears deep alleys." To better sell local characteristic agricultural and pastoral products, Qinghai has devised many strategies.

Taking the brand development path, Qinghai integrated agricultural and pastoral resources, launching the "Pure Land Qinghai · Highland Premium Products" regional agricultural and pastoral brand. Through unified brand image, promotional campaigns, and quality standards, Qinghai's characteristic agricultural and livestock products' visibility and reputation significantly improved. Today, the "Pure Land Qinghai · Highland Premium Products" brand covers yak, Tibetan sheep, highland barley and other characteristic industry products, becoming Qinghai's "golden business card."

Under policy guidance, numerous enterprise brands and product brands have emerged like bamboo shoots after rain in Qinghai. Taking Gongluo Company as an example, the village applied for the "Gongluo Zang" brand at the company's establishment. E Zangja said that with the "Gongluo Zang" brand's support, Gongluo Company's sales have exceeded one million yuan.

Currently, online sales represent a major trend in market expansion. In May 2020, Qinghai Agricultural, Forestry, and Livestock Commodity Trading Center in Haidong officially began operations. Over five years, the trading center launched the "Western Selection" digital trading platform, providing free e-commerce platform operations, agricultural product market promotion, sales channel connections and other services to resident enterprises, driving over 2,600 agricultural and pastoral enterprises onto the e-commerce development "express train."

Data shows the "Western Selection" platform currently features over 20,000 characteristic agricultural products online, with transaction (sales) volume exceeding 1.3 billion yuan.

"We use big data and Internet of Things technology to build platforms, conduct over 200 e-commerce training sessions covering more than 20,000 people, and establish supply and marketing connections with 14 provinces and cities," introduced Jin Bangyun, Deputy General Manager of Qinghai Agricultural, Forestry, and Livestock Commodity Trading Center. Currently, the trading center is collaborating with agricultural product trading centers in East China, Sichuan-Tibet and other regions to promote "Eastern production sent west, western production entering east" cooperation.

Characteristic industries show new vitality. From strengthening production foundations and innovating product supply to expanding sales channels, Qinghai has provided policies, pursued innovation, and created brands around the complete characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry industrial chain, charting a value-added development path.

In the future, from pastures to workshops, from brands to markets, on this vast highland fertile soil, the characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry industrial chain continues extending.