Gongcheng Bamboo Rats

Gongcheng Bamboo Rats

Gongcheng bamboo rats are a geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Gongcheng bamboo rats are large in size, meaty, delicious in taste, and rich in nutrition. Their fur is thick, soft, and velvety, giving them high economic value. Gongcheng bamboo rats are a nationally protected geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Bamboo rats, also known as bamboo rats or winter bamboo rats, are rare second-class protected wild animals in the mountainous regions of southern China. The *Compendium of Materia Medica* states that “bamboo rat meat is sweet, neutral, and non-toxic. It supplements the middle energizer, boosts qi, and detoxifies.” The state included the artificial breeding of bamboo rats in the Spark Program, encouraging the public to engage in their cultivation.

　　Characteristics of bamboo rats: large in size, meaty, delicious in taste, and rich in nutrition. Their fur is thick, soft, and velvety, providing high economic value. Tests show that they contain 57.78% crude protein, 20.54% crude fat, 17.36% crude ash, 0.84% crude fiber, and 0.05% cholesterol, along with abundant phosphorus, iron, calcium, vitamin E, amino acids, and sterols. Their levels of lysine, leucine, and methionine surpass those of chicken, duck, goose, pig, cow, sheep, fish, shrimp, and crab. They are a high-nutrition, low-fat, low-cholesterol delicacy.

　　The breeding of bamboo rats has become a new industry in Gongcheng Yao Autonomous County. In 2009, there were about 1,000 bamboo rat breeders in the county, with approximately 20,000 breeding stock and over 40,000 meat rats sold annually. By 2010, the number of bamboo rat breeders had increased to 1,670, with around 40,000 breeding pairs and over 200,000 meat rats sold per year.

　　Currently, eight bamboo rat breeding cooperatives have been established, including Yunfengyuan, Guifengyuan, and Beidongyuan, with over 1,200 member breeders. These cooperatives offer a one-stop service including the supply of breeding stock, feed, technical support, and the purchase of bamboo rats. They follow a “cooperative + farmer” model and implement a “separate breeding, joint marketing” approach, effectively reducing breeding risks and safeguarding the enthusiasm of breeders. In 2009, Yunfengyuan was awarded one of the “Top Ten Breeding Cooperatives” in the region, and in 2010, both Yunfengyuan and Guifengyuan were named key leading enterprises in aquaculture and animal husbandry.

　　In 2013, the application for “Gongcheng Bamboo Rats” submitted by the Animal Husbandry and Feed Station of the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Bureau of Gongcheng Yao Autonomous County passed the review by the Agricultural Product Quality and Safety Center of the Ministry of Agriculture and expert evaluation, leading to its implementation under the national geographical indication agricultural product registration and protection system.

　　The designated geographical protection area for Gongcheng bamboo rats includes three towns and six townships in Gongcheng County: Gongcheng Town, Limu Town, Lianhua Town, Sanjiang Township, Ping’an Township, Xiling Township, Jiahui Township, Longhu Township, and Guanyin Township, covering a total of 117 administrative villages. The geographical coordinates are between 110°36′41″ to 111°10′12″ east longitude and 24°36′50″ to 25°17′15″ north latitude.