China News Agency, Beijing, May 20 (Reporter Liu Liang) According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization on the 20th, three Chinese heritage sites - Inner Mongolia Alu Horqin grassland nomadic system, Fujian Anxi Tieguanyin tea culture system, Hebei Shexian dry farming system. The Shiyan Terrace System is officially recognized as a Globally Important Agricultural Cultural Heritage for its unique use of traditional methods and knowledge to maintain unique biodiversity and ecosystems.
From May 17th to 19th, the Scientific Advisory Group of Globally Important Agricultural Cultural Heritage held a meeting, and the above three heritage sites were recognized.
The selection criteria stipulate that a heritage site must be of global importance and public good value, support food security, livelihood security, agrobiodiversity, knowledge systems, social values and culture, and be beautifully landscaped.
Anxi is a long-established tea-producing region located in southeastern Fujian Province, which is said to have been producing tea as early as the 10th century.
The most famous local "Tieguanyin" tea originated in the 18th century.
It is reported that the local tea farmers have the know-how and skillful skills to ensure the best conditions for the cultivation of tea trees and produce high-quality tea through natural environment management.
Passed down from generation to generation, these methods ensure the long-term stability and sustainability of the local tea garden ecosystem.
The Alukorqin steppe nomadic system in the Inner Mongolia region of northern China is the first nomadic agricultural heritage site selected in China and a model of sustainable pastoralism and fragile rangeland management globally.
In order to adapt to the fragile grassland environment, the local herdsmen have continuously shifted their grazing fields to protect vegetation and rationally use water resources, avoiding land degradation and overgrazing, and ensuring a stable supply of local livestock products such as meat and cheese.
The Shexian Dry Farming Shiyan Terraced Field System, located in Hebei Province in northern China, is a rainfed agricultural system with a history dating back to the 13th century.
The local mountainous area has arid climate and harsh natural environment, and Shiyan terraces have created conditions for farming on steep slopes and still play an important role to this day.
It not only provides a stable livelihood for the local people, but also creates a model of ecological cycle sustainable agriculture for this northern limestone mountainous area with little soil and little rainfall.
"Globally Important Agricultural Cultural Heritage" is the flagship program of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, and this October will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the program's implementation.
At present, there are 65 globally important agricultural cultural heritage sites recognized by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, of which 18 are located in China.
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