Countermeasures and Recommendations for High Quality Development of Tan Sheep Industry in Ningxia

Xiuqin WANG, Xiaoming MA Yuli MA, Caijuan YUE, Zhengwei ZHAO, Kun WANG, Lina MA, Junli ZHANG, Qing MA*

1. Institute of Animal Science, Ningxia Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Yinchuan 750002, China; 2. Yinchuan Jinma Livestock and Poultry Breeding Professional Cooperative, Yinchuan 750001, China; 3. Ningxia Animal Husbandry Workstation, Yinchuan 750001, China

Abstract Tan sheep industry is a characteristic and superior agricultural industry in Ningxia, and it is also an enriching industry that helps in poverty alleviation and increases farmers’ income. The local government has been committing to building the "Yanchi Tan Sheep" brand and has made remarkable achievements. In order to explore the resource efficiency and quality of Tan sheep industry, the current situations and advantages of brand development, this paper made an empirical research through field investigations. The research was mainly concentrated on breeding scale, industrial integration, brand building, breeding benefits, and policy support. After a comprehensive evaluation, it came up with the recommendation that the Tan sheep industry should take the high-quality, high-end and green development road.

Key words Tan sheep, Tan sheep industry, High quality development, Countermeasures and recommendations, Ningxia

1 Introduction

Tan sheep is an excellent local sheep variety cultivated under unique natural conditions. In ancient times, Tan sheep was listed as one of the four most famous products in Ningxia, and it is a national second-class protected species. As the "Hometown of Tan Sheep in China", Ningxia has become a demonstration model of national agricultural product geographical indications. Ningxia Tan Sheep was selected as one of the top 100 national agricultural products regional public brands and a national trademark case of helping farmers getting. It has become a representative brand of China’s important agricultural material cultural heritage and high-end mutton, and it is also a pillar industry that drives local farmers to become rich and well-off. In recent years, the local government has continued to improve support policies, strengthen the construction of the entire industrial chain, and improve and consolidate the basic conditions for industrial development, so that the Tan sheep industry has become an important industry for promoting the county-wide economic development and increasing farmers’ income. This provides an important industrial foundation for structural optimization and high-quality development of Tan sheep industry.

2 Current development situation of Tan sheep industry in Ningxia

As the hometown of Tan sheep in China, Ningxia takes Tan sheep industry as a key industry for poverty alleviation and helping farmers getting rich in the central and southern mountainous areas based on resource endowment and county (district) industrial development advantages. In 2019, 11.482 million Tan sheep were raised in the whole region, an increase of 27.7% over 2010, of which 5.685 million were in stock and 5.797 million were sold; The output of mutton is 104 000 t, ranking 13thin the whole country; the per capita mutton share was 14.4 kg, ranking fifth in the whole country. Ningxia has cultivated 14 leading enterprises in agricultural industrialization, slaughtering and processing 3.145 million sheep, with a slaughtering and processing rate of 67.2% and deep processing of 12%; the output value of the entire industry chain has reached 21.5 billion yuan.

2.1 Continuous expansion of the breeding scaleIn the whole region, there are 242 783 Tan sheep farms (households), and 14 665 large-scale farms (households) with an annual slaughter of more than 100 sheep, and the proportion of large scale farms (households) reaching 46.5%. The level of large-scale breeding in the core area of Tan sheep is higher than the average level of the whole region. There are 7 182 large-scale breeding farms (households) with annual slaughter more than 100, and the proportion of large-scale breeding reaches 53.1%, which is 6.6 percentage points higher than the regional average and 15 percentage points higher than the national average. At the same time, Ningxia has built 1 243 new types of business entities such as breeding cooperatives and family farms, radiating and driving 31 000 farmers, building 89 Tan sheep breeding demonstration villages and 329 breeding parks. The main body of Tan sheep breeding takes on the structure of "enterprise+large-scale breeding parks (farms)+breeding farmers", and the proportion of large-scale breeding is nearly 60%.

2.2 Strong driving force of leading enterprisesIn July 2017, Ningxia Yanchi Tan Sheep Industry Development Group Co., Ltd. was established. It led the establishment of Tan Sheep Industrial Complex with 46 enterprises including Yanchi Xinhai Company and Shanghai Xixianji E-commerce Co., Ltd. Through projects such as the integrated development of primary, secondary and tertiary industries, Ningxia Yanchi Tan Sheep Industry Development Group has coordinated financing of about 50 million yuan for industrial chain enterprises every year, with a cumulative financing amount of more than 500 million yuan. Ningxia has established the "group company+association", and "enterprise+base+farmer" driving models. Driven by Tan Sheep Industry Group and coordinated by industry associations, Ningxia implements the "six unification" model of Tan sheep production, development and sales, namely unified variety, unified technology, unified acquisition, unified brand, unified feed, and unified sales.

2.3 Continuous improvement of quality and brand advantages"Yanchi Tan Sheep" is a national agricultural product geographical indication demonstration model, and was selected as one of the top 100 national agricultural product regional public brands. In 2005, "Yanchi Tan Sheep" was listed as a national protected variety of livestock and poultry genetic resources by the Ministry of Agriculture, and in the same year, it successfully registered the origin certification trademark. In 2010, "Yanchi Tan Sheep" was awarded "China Famous Trademark" by the Trademark Office of China National Intellectual Property Administration. In 2012, "Yanchitan mutton" and " Sheep Kivskin" passed the certification of agricultural product geographical indications by the Ministry of Agriculture. In 2017, "Yanchi Tan Sheep" was successfully included into the fourth batch of "China’s Important Agricultural Cultural Heritage List", and was selected as a national trademark case of helping farmers getting rich. At present, 66 enterprises have been authorized to use "Yanchi Tan Sheep" trademark, and 48 enterprises have been authorized to use the geographical indication certification mark. Tan mutton has been selected as the special ingredient for state banquets of major conferences such as the G20 Hangzhou Summit, the BRICS Summit in Xiamen and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit. Tan mutton’s popularity, reputation, and market share in the mid-to-high-end markets in first-tier and second-tier cities have increased year by year, with a brand value of nearly 7 billion yuan.

2.4 Broad prospects for market developmentNingxia has held 30 (times) brand promotion conferences for "Yanchi Tan Sheep" in first-tier and second-tier cities such as Beijing and Guangzhou. Through offline physical stores and online shopping,etc., a sales model of "enterprise direct sales stores+brand stores+retail stores+supermarket counters+network e-commerce" has been formed. It has opened 226 sales stores in 26 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities), and its products have entered 153 supermarket chains and 262 catering companies in large and medium-sized cities across the whole country. In 2019, the sales volume of Yanchi Tan mutton outside the region was 8 668.9 t, accounting for 26.3% of the total output. Among them, 5 067.9 t were sold in 40 large and medium-sized cities through sales stores and chain supermarkets. The sales volume in first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou reached 2 990.5 t, accounting for 59.0% of the sales outside the region, the sales volume in second-tier cities such as Jinan and Xiamen was 447.3 t, accounting for 8.8%, and the sales volume in other cities was 1 630.1 t, accounting for 32.2%. In addition, 3 600.0 t of Tan mutton was sold through corporate online stores and e-commerce platforms (Fig.1).

Fig.1 Proportion of Ningxia Yanchi Tan mutton sales in 2019

3 Advantages of developing Tan sheep industry in Ningxia

3.1 Prominent role in agricultural economic development

Ningxia has a history of raising sheep for longer than 300 years. Farmers in the central arid zone in Ningxia have always had the habit of raising Tan sheep and passed it on from generation to generation. In the development of agricultural characteristic superior industries in Ningxia, the local government has always focused on the Tan sheep industry, continuously improved support policies, and improved the basic conditions for industrial development. Tan sheep industry plays a more prominent role in increasing farmers’ income, and has become an important industry to promote county-wide economic development and increase farmers’ income. The proportion of mutton output in Ningxia’s total meat production has remained the second, accounting for 31.3% in 2019, and it has played an important role in agricultural economic development and farmers’ production and life. The output value of animal husbandry with Tan sheep as the major portion reached 1.12 billion yuan, accounting for 64.4% of the total agricultural output value. Yanchi County in Ningxia, which enjoys the "Hometown of Tan Sheep in China", firmly takes the road of industrialized poverty alleviation, always regards Yanchi Tan Sheep as the first poverty alleviation industry, and continuously develops and expands characteristic industrial clusters to achieve a win-win situation between industrial development and targeted poverty alleviation. Driven by the "Yanchi Tan Sheep" brand, Yanchi County successfully passed the national examination and acceptance in 2018, becoming the first county in Ningxia to get rid of the poverty. In 2019, Yanchi County achieved a historic "zero" of the absolute poverty population under the current standard. The per capita disposable income of farmers increased from 3 669 yuan in 2010 to 12 127 yuan by the end of 2020, of which more than half of the income came from the Tan sheep industry. As of the end of April 2021, the average net income of Tan sheep was about 200 yuan, and the average net income of farmers was more than 50 000 yuan. Tan Sheep industry has achieved full coverage of poverty-stricken villages, radiated and driven more than 80% of poor households, and became the leading industry for the poor to get rid of poverty and become rich, contributing more than 70% to the income increase of the poor.

3.2 Significant advantages of industrial productionIn accordance with regional characteristics, Ningxia has mainly constructed the Tan sheep core area in the central arid zone, the Yellow River irrigation area and the Tan sheep improvement area in Guyuan area. In the core area of Tan sheep in the central arid zone, Ningxia has strengthened policy support, promoted the breeding of Tan sheep, strengthened the construction of breeding bases and the construction of the entire industry chain, and promoted the integrated development of industries and the improvement of regional public brand advantages. In 2019, the number of Tan sheep raised in the core area was 6.41 million, accounting for 55.8% of the whole region (Table 1), and the number of Tan sheep raised in the Yellow River irrigation area and the Tan sheep improvement area in Guyuan area was 5.07 million, accounting for 44.2% of the whole region (Table 2).

Table 1 Production of Tan sheep core area in Ningxia in 2019

Table 2 Production of Tan sheep improvement area in Ningxia in 2019

3.3 Superior industrial support policiesNingxia has successively issued industrial guidance policies such as theOpinionsonInnovatingtheWaysofFinancialSupportforAgriculturetoAcceleratetheDevelopmentofAgriculturalCharacteristicandSuperiorIndustries, and thePromotionPlanfortheIntegratedDevelopmentofTanSheepIndustriesDrivenbyLeadingEnterprises, with an annual financial subsidy of about 50 million yuan. It has implemented the Tan sheep breeding, protection and utilization project, with an annual subsidy fund of 20 million yuan, and has implemented the project of leading enterprises to promote the integrated development of Tan sheep industry and annually purchased 500 000 Tan sheep from farmers every year, subsidized farmers 30 yuan each, and subsidized 15 million yuan. In addition, it has implemented the subsidy project for fine varieties, and subsidize 800 yuan per ram for large-scale farms, parks, cooperatives and breeders with more than 30 pieces in stock, with an average annual subsidy of 10 million yuan. It also has implemented projects such as key technology research and demonstration and promotion of Tan sheep industry, with an annual financial subsidy of more than 5 million yuan.

4 Problems

4.1 Small scale and low standardizationAt present, the moderate-scale breeding of Tan sheep is mainly carried out by farmers. The proportion of scatter breeding farmers and small-scale farmers is relatively large, the production efficiency is not high, the industrial chain is not long, the degree of organization is not high, and the ability to connect to the market is weak. As a result, the comparative benefit is low, and the effect of brand premium is not given out.

4.2 High production costs and tighter resource constraints

After Ningxia implemented the closure of mountains and grazing in the whole region, the breeding industry was all housed and kept in pens. Seasonal and regional shortages of forage grass appear, and the contradiction between the structural shortage of forage grass is very prominent. According to the survey, the core area of Tan sheep purchased about 445 000 t of forage in the whole region in 2019. In addition, the degree of standardization is not high, and the production cost is significantly higher than that outside the region. Furthermore, the Tan sheep breeding area is basically located in the central and southern part of Ningxia, where the terrain fluctuates greatly, and the cultivated land is mainly mountainous and sloping. The congenital shortage of resource water shortage causes great pressure on forage planting and supply.

4.3 Weak driving force of leading enterprises and insufficient capital investmentThere is lack of large enterprises with financial strength, advanced management and leading role. Free-range farmers and small-scale farmers cannot form an agglomeration effect of joint development. The domestic market competitiveness of leading enterprises is insufficient. The capital investment is insufficient, especially in talent introduction, technology research and development, marketing,etc.In consequence, the production management level of the enterprise is low, the product technology content is insufficient, the deep processing ability is weak, and the added value is low. Processing and sales enterprises have difficulty in financing, limited commercial credit funds, and long payback period for export mutton funds, resulting in a lack of working capital, resulting in a lack of funds for full-load production when the market is good.

5 Countermeasures and recommendations for promoting the high-quality development of Ningxia Tan sheep industry

Sheep industry is an important part of animal husbandry production, and Tan sheep industry is one of the agricultural characteristic superior industries determined in Ningxia. In April 2021, theFive-YearActionPlanforPromotingtheDevelopmentofBeefCattleandMuttonSheepProductionissued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs pointed out that the development of the mutton sheep industry is of great importance to enhancing the supply and security capabilities of mutton, consolidating the achievements of poverty alleviation, comprehensively promoting rural revitalization, and promoting stable economic and social development, and pointed out the target requirement of "adhering to both quantity and quality" for the development of beef and mutton industry. In order to promote the high-quality development of the Tan sheep industry, the Ningxia People’s Government has formulated theImplementationPlanforHigh-QualityDevelopmentofTanSheepIndustryinImplementationPlanforHigh-qualityDevelopmentofNineKeyIndustriesinNingxiafor the development of the Tan sheep industry. In addition, it put forward the overall goals, key tasks and work requirements for promoting the high-quality development of Ningxia Tan sheep industry during the 14thFive-Year Plan period, which pointed out the direction and path for promoting the green and high-quality development of Ningxia Tan sheep industry.

5.1 Promoting the regionalized layoutIt is recommended that the resource efficiency and quality of the Tan sheep industry and the high-quality development of the brand should be taken as the starting point to further optimize the adjustment of industrial regions, and integrate superior resources in the core area of Tan sheep, accelerate the construction of modern industrial parks and standardized large-scale breeding bases, promote the separation of humans and livestock, and move out of the house, promote the development of industrial agglomeration, intensification, and cluster development, and enhance the advantages of production areas. In the Tan sheep improvement area, it is recommended to further optimize the regional layout, support industrial counties to integrate advantageous resources, strengthen the construction of breeding bases, form agglomeration effects, increase the concentration of industrial development, improve the Tan sheep production system and business model, and promote standardized production, large-scale operation and industrialized development.

5.2 Promoting the large-scale operationIn the core area of Tan sheep breeding, it is recommended to guide farmers to adopt land transfer, exchange, lease and other methods to integrate land resources and develop large-scale breeding. Besides, it is recommended to set up cooperative organizations, expand social services, implement order production, and implement high quality and good price. In addition, it is necessary to improve the standardization level and scale advantages of base construction, cultivate and strengthen Tan sheep associations, industry groups, and industry alliances, improve the ability of joint enterprises to lead farmers, technical services, market development, brand marketing,etc.Furthermore, it is recommended to establish a top-down linkage development mechanism of "counties leading townships, townships leading villages, villages leading groups, and groups leading households", and implement the "six unification" model of Tan sheep production, development, and sales, namely unified variety, unified technology, unified acquisition, unified brand, unified feed, and unified sales, to promote the effective connection and coordinated development of the entire Tan sheep industry chain, and improve the level of economies of scale.

5.3 Promoting the standardized productionIt is recommended to improve the production technology standard system, increase the introduction, demonstration, promotion and application of advanced technology, advanced equipment and advanced technology. Besides, it is recommended to strengthen the construction of Tan sheep breeding bases, the selection of Tan sheep varieties, the selection of new lines and the promotion of improved varieties, accelerate the expansion, purification and rejuvenation of high-quality Tan sheep, and build a three-level breeding system for "core population, breeding population, and expanding population" and an integrated production system for selection, breeding, and promotion. In addition, it is necessary to cultivate and expand leading breeding enterprises, improve the management methods for species identification and product traceability system, and promote high-quality standard breeding. Furthermore, it is recommended to formulate and improve brand protection measures, establish a joint production area mechanism for the "Yanchi Tan Sheep" brand, improve market-based joint management services, and promote the transformation of brand advantages into production area advantages, production advantages, and market advantages. Also, it is necessary to support industrial associations and leading enterprises to implement Tan sheep breed certification and registration, strengthen the demonstration and promotion of standardized breeding techniques, and improve production technical standards and specifications such as breeding of high-quality Tan sheep, TMR feeding, information management, intensive processing, cold chain transportation, and traceability management.

5.4 Promoting the industrialized productionIt is recommended to introduce advanced deep processing and cold chain distribution equipment, and develop refined segmentation processes and products suitable for Chinese food habits and the quality characteristics of Tan sheep mutton. Besides, it is necessary to establish a stable sales network and expand the development space of "Yanchi Tan Sheep" through marketing methods such as chain operation, network marketing, private customization and direct distribution, vigorously promote the modes of "leading enterprises+industrial associations+order production+base farmers", "leading enterprises+cooperatives+order production+base farmers",etc.In addition, it is recommended to guide leading enterprises to establish a close interest linkage mechanism with breeding bases, professional cooperatives, and family ranches through order production, share cooperation, and protected price acquisitions, strengthen the development of mid-to-high-end markets, and build a high-quality, competitive-price production and marketing system, and promote the authorized operation of the "Yanchi Tan Sheep" brand, establish a cross-regional Tan Sheep order production base, drive the coordinated development of each production area, and make the "Yanchi Tan Sheep" brand bigger and stronger.

5.5 Promoting the green high-quality developmentIt is necessary to actively promote the integrated development of planting and breeding in accordance with the requirements of "high quality varieties, large-scale production, breeding facilities, standardized management, institutionalized epidemic prevention, and harmless manure treatment". Focusing on the high-quality, high-efficiency, green and healthy development requirements of Tan sheep industry, related parties should carry out research on Tan sheep gene identification technology and demonstration of characteristic high-quality Tan sheep meat production technology, establish and improve product classification and grading standards and management methods, and innovate Tan sheep product quality control and traceability management technologies. Besides, it is recommended to strengthen the changes of grain to feed, increase the development and utilization of unconventional forage resources, and improve the level of mechanized storage and feeding, establish and improve the collaborative innovation mechanism of production, learning, research, and promotion, and establish a market-oriented service mechanism. In addition, it is recommended to strengthen professional services such as forage processing and distribution, epidemic prevention and control, and technical training, and provide farmers with standardized farming services before, during and after production, and promote the well connection between small and medium farmers and the development of modern agriculture, so as to realize the efficiency and quality of industry and resources, and the high-quality development of "Yanchi Tan Sheep" brand.