Beef production in China and prospects

Abstract

Beef consumption in China has risen sharply since the economic reform and open economy in the late 1970s. However, China has no actual “beef industry” with organized professional actors. Moreover, the volume of production has hardly increased. The slowing down of production growth in these recent years has led to a sharp rise in beef prices. The Chinese beef industry is facing many technical problems due to traditional practices (for example, cattle were used as traction for agricultural work). These difficulties lead to low productivity in the sector and are accompanied by a continuous deterioration of the national herd caused by dispersion of small farms, reduction needs in animal traction, low valuation of forage resources, lack of technical knowledge of small farmers, and delay in the genetic improvement of cattle breeds. Improvements in technicity are necessary, including better use of different feed resources for cattle (grazed or harvested grass, by-products) and adaption of production for matching the consumers’ demands. A better organization of the beef production chain in a sustainable system should also take into account other issues such as environmental protection and animal welfare.