Huangliangmeng Millet

Huangliangmeng Millet

Huangliangmeng Millet is a protected geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Huangliangmeng Millet is a specialty of Handan County, Handan City, Hebei Province. It features a golden color, plump grains, and a relatively hard texture. When cooked into porridge, it becomes thick and yellow with a smooth mouthfeel, earning it the reputation of being the “poor man’s ginseng soup.” Huangliangmeng Millet is a nationally protected geographical indication agricultural product.

　　The story of “Huangliangmeng” dates back to the seventh year of the Kaiyuan era in the Tang Dynasty (AD 719, over 1,200 years ago), and it is widely known. It has been the subject of poems and inscriptions by notable figures throughout history, making its brand value immeasurable. The story took place in Huangliangmeng Village, Handan, Tang Dynasty (5 kilometers from the city center), where “huangliang” refers to high-quality millet, proving that millet was already an essential staple in the lives of people in Handan during the Tang Dynasty.

　　Hebei Huangliangmeimeng Rice Industry Co., Ltd. has tens of thousands of acres of planting bases on both sides of the Taihang Mountains, located on the western side in the “Cishan Culture” site of Handan. Archaeological discoveries include carbonized grains from 7,000 years ago, indicating that grain cultivation was already quite common in the Handan area 7,000 years ago. As a result, Wu’an in Handan has been awarded the honorary titles of “China’s Hometown of Millet” and “Birthplace of World Foxtail Millet” by the National Ministry of Agriculture, fully demonstrating that the local area is most suitable for millet cultivation, with soil and climate conditions that are ideal for millet growth. The idiom and historical tale related to millet, “Huangliang Meimeng” (A Dream of Red Mansions), is unique in the world. Today, Huangliangmeng Millet is a nutritious delicacy on people’s dining tables.

　　Huangliangmeng Millet features a golden color, plump grains, and a relatively hard texture. It can be used to make porridge, lifted rice (dried millet rice), millet cakes, millet steamed cornbread, and bean paste (made from ground millet), among other foods. When cooked into porridge, it becomes thick and yellow with a smooth mouthfeel, earning it the reputation of being the “poor man’s ginseng soup.” Regular consumption helps nourish the stomach, calm the nerves, aid digestion, and improve sleep.

　　In 2014, “Huangliangmeng Millet,” applied for by the Handan Huangliangmeimeng Grain Planting Association, passed the review of the Agricultural Product Quality and Safety Center of the Ministry of Agriculture and expert evaluation, and was granted national geographical indication registration protection.

　　Geographical Scope

　　The production area of Huangliangmeng Millet is located across 187 villages in eight towns in Handan County: Huangliangmeng Town, Hucun Town, Kangzhuang Township, Sanling Township, Shangbi Town, Dazhao Township, Nanbao Township, and Hesha Town. Geographic coordinates: longitude 114°21′18″ to 114°38′08″, latitude 36°29′38″ to 36°42′36″. The millet planting area of Huangliangmeng spans from Yuguo Village in Kangzhuang Township in the southwest, to Gaoyao Village in Sanling Township in the northwest, to Beijingzhai Village in Shangbi Town in the northeast, and to Miaozhuang Village in Hesha Town in the southeast, adjacent to Wu’an City, Yongnian County, and Cheng’an County. The protected area covers 20,764.79 hectares, with a perennial millet planting area of 3,500 hectares and an annual yield of 10,500 tons.

　　Product Quality Characteristics

　　1. External Features: Huangliangmeng Millet has a golden color, plump grains, and a perfectly round shape. Its horizontal diameter is slightly larger than its vertical diameter, with a deep yellow grain groove along the vertical axis. The grains are small, with a thousand-grain weight of about 2.0g, and 2–5% of the grains are white. When cooked into porridge, it becomes thick and yellow with a smooth mouthfeel.   2. Internal Quality: Huangliangmeng Millet is rich in nutrients such as protein, calcium, and iron. Testing shows that it contains >8.9g/100g of protein, >8.0 mg/100g of calcium, and >1.6mg/100g of iron.   3. Safety Requirements: Huangliangmeng Millet strictly adheres to the product quality standards of “NY5305-2005 Pollution-Free Food Foxtail Millet.” Agricultural inputs are used rationally to ensure the product quality meets national standards and specifications.