In Tianjin, tech helps breed superior sheep

A sheep breeding base in Tianjin is harnessing advanced technologies to reshape livestock farming both in China and abroad. Through its collaboration with Saudi Arabia, the base has helped slash lamb mortality rates from over 20 percent to below 10 percent and assisted in building three intelligent sheep barns in the country.

These achievements showcase the progress China has made in smart agriculture and its influence in the international market, said Feng Jie, deputy head of Tuanbo town in Jinghai district, Tianjin.

At the Aoqun Animal Husbandry facility in Tuanbo, the latest technologies are transforming traditional farming. Intelligent systems regulate barn temperatures, while robots identify and clean manure passages before returning to their stations. A feed efficiency monitoring system tracks each animal's feed intake, weight, and feeding time, enabling precise control over nutrition and health.

"In recent years, the company has established a 'Sheep Internet' platform and a national-level mutton sheep performance testing center. These scientific breeding methods have been integrated into production practices, effectively guiding the selection, breeding and promotion of breeding sheep," said Lu Xiaofang, director of the mutton sheep factory in Tuanbo.

"Each sheep wears an electronic ear tag that allows automatic tracking of weight, growth and health conditions," said Lu, "Through our Sheep Internet platform, managers can design more rational and scientific breeding plans."

The facility also uses CT scanning technology developed in-house, producing high-resolution 3D images of sheep muscle, fat, and bone tissues. "This makes trait data as detailed as ocular muscle area, with muscle-fat and meat-bone ratios clearly visible," Lu said.

During a recent demonstration, over 200 detailed images were captured in just 100 seconds, with a precision of 0.1 millimeters, showing the distribution of muscles, fat and bones in sheep.

"Our efficient breeding technologies and intelligent breeding techniques have attracted inspection delegations from countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iran and South Africa for visits on multiple occasions," said Lin Chunjian, manager of Aoqun.

Beyond its global reach, Aoqun has had a major local impact. More than 80 jobs have been created in areas such as breeding, livestock care, and logistics. Over 5,000 farmers have received free training to boost their livestock-raising skills, helping lift rural communities out of poverty, according to Lu.

Over 20 years ago, Chen Hua, founder of Aoqun Animal Husbandry, learned that China was heavily reliant on imported breeding sheep and decided to start his own business to cultivate breeding sheep.

"Tuanbo town has abundant sunlight and geothermal resources, allowing the sheep barns to utilize geothermal energy for temperature control. Moreover, relying on the Tuanbo Lake Wetland, there is an abundance of natural forage and clean water, providing a natural grazing area for the sheep and further reducing breeding costs," Lu explained.

Jinghai district has a well-developed agricultural sector, with a relatively high proportion of farmers engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry. They not only have certain breeding experience but also enjoy low labor costs, creating favorable conditions for the development of breeding here, Feng said. After years of upgrading breeding technologies, in 2018, the new mutton sheep breed "Aobai Multiparous Sheep" developed by Chen's team achieved a reproduction rate of 220 percent.

"We no longer import breeding sheep now. The breeding sheep we have cultivated through closed breeding surpass foreign breeds in production performance by about 10 to 15 percent," said Zhang Zhichao, breeding director of Aoqun.

Tianjin will host the 2025 Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit this autumn. Lu expressed hope of exchanging and learning from other international mutton sheep breeding enterprises.

"Taking the opportunity of the SCO Summit, we hope to showcase the achievements in protecting the Tuanbo Lake Wetland to the world, share our breeding technologies, strive to become a pilot for ecological cooperation under the SCO, and promote cooperation between enterprises like Aoqun Animal Husbandry and SCO member states," Feng said.

Bao Yan contributed to this story.

yandongjie@chinadaily.com.cn