Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng

Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng

Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng is a geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Benxi County is rich in wild medicinal herbs, encompassing 114 families and over 970 species, including more than 300 varieties of rare and common herbs, with an annual output of 5,000 tons. The main types are ginseng, asarum heterotropoides, schisandra chinensis, and acanthopanax senticosus. By the end of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan period, Benxi County had developed 617,000 acres of forest-grown medicinal herbs with wild-grown ginseng as the primary variety.

　　The production area of Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng is located within Benxi Manchu Autonomous County, Liaoning Province (hereinafter referred to as Benxi County). The protected geographical indication area includes seven towns and farms: Xiaoshi Town, Jianchang Town, Nandian Town, Tianshifu Town, Dongyingfang Township, Caohezhang Town, and the Farming and Animal Husbandry Farm, covering a total of 56 administrative villages. The geographical coordinates are longitude 123°55′43″ to 124°45′24″ and latitude 40°55′40″ to 41°24′19″, with a total area of 196,290 hectares. It was registered as a national agricultural geographical indication product by the Ministry of Agriculture in 2012, with the certificate held by the Forestry Industry Development Bureau of Benxi Manchu Autonomous County. Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng features a naturally beautiful appearance, with a yellowish-white skin color, full juice content, glossy surface, tight outer skin, closely arranged rhizome scars, a slender rhizome neck, usually 1–2 stem scars, a short transverse main root typically 2–5 cm long, fine and deep ring patterns, sparse but neat and slender rootlets, firm yet not brittle texture, and numerous pearl-like bumps. Benxi County is located in the mountainous region of eastern Liaoning and falls within the mid-temperate humid climate zone, with a forest coverage rate of 76.8% and abundant rainfall — annual precipitation ranges from 800 to 1,000 mm. The unique geographical conditions and natural environment make it a major production area for “Liao Medicinals.” Benxi County is one of the primary sources of wild ginseng from the Changbai Mountain range, with a harvesting history spanning several hundred years. According to Draft History of Qing, as early as the seventh year of the Wanli era in the Ming Dynasty (1579), people in the Benxi area were already entering the mountains to gather herbs and dig for ginseng, processing them using traditional methods. As early as the 1960s, Benxi County was nationally renowned as a “Medicinal Materials Production Base County” and a “Liaoning Provincial Medicinal Materials Production Demonstration County.” It was also among the first regions to implement artificial cultivation of wild ginseng. The economic benefits of the wild-grown ginseng industry have been recognized by governments at all levels and ginseng farmers. Among the county’s total medicinal herb cultivation area, wild-grown ginseng accounts for over 300,000 acres, with an annual output of more than 1,100 kg and an annual output value exceeding 300 million yuan, making it the dominant variety. The economic proportion contributed by wild-grown ginseng within the total medicinal herbs has been increasing year by year, becoming an important component of Benxi County’s forest economy.

　　Geographical Area

　　Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng is produced within Benxi Manchu Autonomous County, Benxi City, Liaoning Province (hereinafter referred to as Benxi County). The protected geographical indication area for Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng includes six towns and one farm: Xiaoshi Town, Jianchang Town, Nandian Town, Tianshifu Town, Dongyingfang Township, Caohezhang Town, and the Farming and Animal Husbandry Farm, encompassing a total of 56 administrative villages. The geographic coordinates span longitude 123°55′43″ to 124°45′24″ and latitude 40°55′40″ to 41°24′19″, covering a total area of 20,000 hectares.

　　Product Quality Characteristics

　　(1) External Sensory Features: Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng has an elegant and natural appearance, with a yellowish-white skin color, full juice content, glossy surface, tight outer skin, closely arranged rhizome scars, a slender rhizome neck, typically 1–2 stem scars, a short transverse main root usually 2–5 cm in length, fine and deep ring patterns, sparse but neat and slender rootlets, firm yet not brittle texture, and numerous pearl-like bumps. (2) Internal Quality Indicators: The total saponin content of Benxi Wild-Grown Ginseng is above 4.5%. (3) Safety Requirements: Product safety and other quality technical standards must comply with NY/T1043-2006 “Green Food – Ginseng and American Ginseng.”