Big Field Rabbit Meat

Big Field Rabbit Meat

Big Field rabbit meat is a protected geographical indication product.

　　Big Field rabbit meat is a geographical indication protected product.    Big Field rabbit meat is a specialty of Datian County in Fujian Province. It is a China National Geographic Indication product. Known for its robust and compact build, as well as its “five blacks”—black fur, black skin, black eyes, black ears, and black claws—Big Field rabbit meat boasts tender texture, delicious flavor, unique taste, and excellent color, aroma, and taste. It is highly favored by consumers, and the product is sold both domestically and internationally.

　　　Datian County is renowned for its production of Big Field rabbit meat and is honored as the “Hometown of Rabbit Meat.” It is the largest rabbit meat production base in Fujian Province. Statistics show that over 80% of households in Datian County raise Big Field rabbits. In 2008, the county had 2.12 million rabbits, with 1.41 million marketed, generating an output value of 42 million yuan. This brought an average income increase of over 130 yuan per farmer from rabbit breeding. The county leads Fujian in rabbit meat production, quality, and sales volume.   Rabbit breeding has long been a tradition in Datian, mostly in the form of scattered household operations, with most families raising only three to five rabbits, and rarely more than ten, treating it as a side business alongside crop farming. Datian is a typical mountainous county, often described as “nine parts mountain, half part water, and half part field,” with 24,000 hectares of usable grassland. Among these, the Xiangshan grassland alone spans 866 hectares, making it the largest contiguous natural grassland in Fujian Province and known as the “Southern Tianshan.” The area is rich in forage resources and enjoys a subtropical monsoon climate with moderate temperatures, making it highly suitable for raising Big Field rabbits.   To develop rabbit farming, around 1993, Datian County organized a team of technical experts to tackle the challenge of low-cost rabbit breeding. The county allocated 3.2 million yuan from the Agricultural Development Fund for research in breeding farms, feed mills, and grassland improvement. This led to the establishment of a breeding farm capable of raising 2,000 parent rabbits and supplying 50,000 rabbitlings annually, along with six township-level branch farms, forming a comprehensive four-tier breeding and promotion network at the county, township, village, and household levels. Meanwhile, successful trials and promotion of techniques such as using high-quality rabbit breeds, premium forage and forage meal pellets, and comprehensive disease prevention increased the survival rate of Big Field rabbits to 93%. Veterinary stations across townships signed technical service contracts with rabbit breeding specialists, providing full technical guidance and veterinary care.   The county was the first to develop and implement agricultural industrialization and a comprehensive standardization system for Big Field rabbit meat. Over 60% of rabbit breeding specialists adopted standardized practices, earning the county the title of “Datian Rabbit Meat Agricultural Industrialization Comprehensive Standardization Demonstration County” awarded by Fujian Province. This ensured standardized breeds, regulated breeding management, rational medication use, and compliance with national hygiene and drug residue standards, thereby improving food safety and overall product quality. The county also registered the “Xianfeng Brand” trademark for Big Field rabbit meat. In May 2001, it was recognized as a provincial famous-brand agricultural product, becoming Datian’s top agricultural brand.   In 2009, Datian had 15 specialized villages where the average household raised over 100 rabbits, and more than 600 key households raising over 500 rabbits each. Over 80% of the county’s households were engaged in raising Big Field rabbit meat.

　　Place of Origin

　　　　The protected geographical indication product area for Big Field rabbit meat covers the entire administrative region of Datian County in Fujian Province.