"Yunnan Province's Fifth "Xingdian Talent Award" Winners' Tour" Huang Bizhi: "Cattle Expert" Who Bred "Yunling Cattle"

Huang Bizhi (left) observes the physical condition of beef cattle

Recently, the reporter came to the Yunnan Academy of Grassland Animal Science to interview, and when he met Huang Bizhi, he was in the cattle grazing pasture of the institute to observe and record the physical condition of the beef cattle in detail. He pointed to one of the calves and said, "Look, in a few days it grew quite stronger." As the dean, Huang Bizhi is familiar with the situation of each cow in the pasture.

After more than 30 years, with the joint efforts of countless experts, this "cattle expert" led the research team to successfully breed China's first ternary hybrid beef cattle breed with independent intellectual property rights, "Yunling Cattle", filling the gap that China cannot produce high-grade beef, and becoming a new highlight of the plateau characteristic agriculture in our province. Cultivate 2 "New Third Board" listed companies, and establish a strategic alliance for technological innovation in the beef cattle industry composed of more than 30 enterprises. Promote the "Yunling cattle" breeding technology to help alleviate poverty, and through enterprises and cooperatives in Ximen, Jinggu, Chuxiong and other places, 15,000 poor households have been lifted out of poverty and become rich.

Unremitting adherence to innovation and research and development bear fruit

Yunnan has abundant forage feed resources, but in the past it has lacked excellent beef cattle breeds adapted to tropical and subtropical climates, and most of the local cattle are used for farming. In order to breed excellent beef cattle breeds adapted to the tropical and subtropical climate, in 1983, the Yunnan Provincial Government and the Australian Government cooperated to launch the "Yunnan Grassland and Livestock Improvement Development Plan". This year, 20-year-old Huang Bizhi was assigned to the Yunnan Beef Cattle and Forage Research Center (the predecessor of the Yunnan Academy of Grassland Animal Science) as a technician.

Photo courtesy of Huang Bizhi's work

In 1984, a plane carrying a group of Australian Moritarian cattle specially "invited" by the Chinese agricultural sector flew from Melbourne in the southern hemisphere to Kunming Wujiaba Airport. At that time, the price of a Molei gray cow in Yunnan was 70,000 yuan, while Huang Bizhi's monthly salary was 64 yuan. He secretly wondered in his heart how good it would be if he could use these sky-high Australian cattle to breed his own beef cattle breed in China.

In 1985, the "transnational marriage" of 87 Mole grey cattle and 99 Yunnan cattle gave birth to the first generation of mixed-race cattle known as "Moyunza". Although "Mo Yunza" has a fast growth rate and high meat production performance, it has no resistance to a variety of local epidemics in Yunnan, such as scorched worm disease. "To this end, after in-depth research, experts decided to continue to introduce resistant varieties and improve them." Huang Bizhi said. At the beginning of 1993, 24 Brahmin cattle set foot on the land of Yunling, becoming the second breed introduced by China from Australia.

Huang Bizhi (right) work photo Courtesy of

From binary hybridization to ternary hybridization, after continuous screening, trial and improvement, after three generations of scientists, nearly 1,000 scientific and technological personnel from 28 scientific research units to participate in research and cultivation, in 2014, Huang Bizhi led the team to take the local cattle in Yunnan as the mother, selected Brahmin cattle and Mole grey cattle as the father, through hybrid innovation, cross-fertilization fixed and 5 generations of breeding, and finally bred "Yunling cattle" with the characteristics of fast growth, good fattening performance, early sexual maturity, high reproductive survival rate, strong disease resistance and so on. This is the first new breed of beef cattle independently cultivated and with intellectual property rights in our province.

At present, the world's best beef cattle are recognized as Japanese Wagyu beef, according to its standards, 70% of the meat quality of "Yunling Beef" can reach A3 or above. In addition, the weight of the "Yunling cattle" is more than twice that of the local cattle, the feeding cycle is shorter than that of the local cattle, and if a "Yunling cattle" is fully utilized, it can generate a value of nearly 150,000 yuan, which is 3 to 5 times higher than the value of ordinary beef cattle.

Comprehensively promote science and technology to feed back and help alleviate poverty

In 2014, "Yunling Cattle" won the National Livestock and Poultry New Breed Certificate, and in 2016, it was designated by the former Ministry of Agriculture as the main breed of beef cattle in southern China in the "13th Five-Year Plan".

In order to establish a standardized, efficient and healthy breeding system for "Yunling cattle" and accelerate the promotion of new varieties, under the correct leadership of the provincial party committee and the provincial government, with the support of the provincial department of agriculture and rural affairs and departments at all levels, the Yunnan Grassland Animal Science Research Institute and more than 30 large beef cattle breeding enterprises have jointly established the "Yunnan Beef Cattle Industry Technology Innovation Strategic Alliance" to carry out the service and application of "Yunling cattle" breeding and supporting technologies. With the in-depth promotion of breeding work and promotion work, at present, 200 to 300 special bulls and 500,000 to 1 million doses of frozen essence can be provided every year.

With the promotion of technology, "Yunling Cattle" has established expansion and improvement points in 8 prefectures (cities) such as Kunming, Chuxiong, Dehong and Pu'er; under the closer combination of "production, learning and research", "Yunling Cattle" has transformed from major scientific research achievements into mature market products, and well-known brands of beef such as "Listening to Pastoralism", "Three Rivers Flowing Together" and "Ai Ling" have embarked on the table of the general public.

Huang Bizhi (center) work photo

At present, the "Yunling Cattle Technology Innovation Center Construction and Achievement Industrialization" project is being promoted, and the Yunnan Grassland Animal Science Research Institute is responsible for the construction of the "Yunling Cattle" Industrial Technology Innovation Center and related technology research and development support, providing "Yunling Cattle" breeding cattle and frozen essence. Tengchong Hengyi Dongshan Agricultural Development Co., Ltd., Pu'er Golden Peacock Green Animal Husbandry Co., Ltd. and other 6 enterprises are mainly responsible for the expansion of "Yunling Cattle", the construction of secondary platforms and the transformation of "Yunling Cattle" technical achievements; Haichao Group Tingmu Beef Cattle Industry Co., Ltd. is responsible for green organic beef slaughtering and processing and the research and development and sales of characteristic and functional beef products.

The industrialization of "Yunling Cattle" is gradually advancing, and the pace of helping the masses get rid of poverty and become rich is getting faster and faster.

Since 2014, the Yunnan Academy of Grassland Animal Science has organized more than 60 scientific and technological personnel to carry out scientific and technological services in remote and poor areas, border ethnic areas and old revolutionary areas in our province, and has trained more than 3,000 grass-roots scientific and technological personnel in the "three districts", distributed more than 5,000 technical materials, and served more than 60 breeding enterprises in the "three regions".

In April 2017, Huang Bizhi Workstation settled in Ximeng Wa Autonomous County. With the help of the national beef cattle yak industry technology system and the help of the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Ximen County began to explore the "Yunling cattle" industry precision poverty alleviation model, through working in cattle farms, planting forage, raising cattle, etc., so that poor households in Lika participated in the breeding of "Yunling cattle".

Ximen County also introduced a new third board listed company in our province through bidding, built 6 "Yunling cattle" hybrid advantages in the local area to use the breeding community, and stored 12,000 "Yunling cattle" hybrid cattle. At present, more than 10,000 poor people in Ximen County have participated in all aspects of the "Yunling Cattle" industry, and the per capita income has increased by more than 2,850 yuan. The "Yunling beef" produced in Ximen County is sold all over the country, and its snowflake beef market price has reached a maximum of 1500 yuan per kilogram.

Yunnan network reporter Chen Yixi