FRESH APPROACHES TO WINTER PASTURING SEE STRONG RETURNS

By Chen Meiling in Beijing, Ma Jingna in Lanzhou and Mao Weihua in Urumqi | China Daily Global | Updated: 2024-12-09 00:00 Keeping herds at home, use of high-tech solutions reduce environmental impact, boost incomes Caring for livestock during the cold season in Northwest China has been modernized in recent years, with Beidou positioning, mobile support vehicles and real-time weather updates making the trek to winter pastures easier for herdsmen and animals. "Although each sheep may incur an additional cost of 98 yuan when compared to transferring them to a winter pasture, the overall net income can still be raised by 28 yuan," he said, adding that a herder can on average earn an extra 12,000 yuan in annual income. In late November, 230,000 camels, cattle and sheep marched across snow-covered mountains from Jeminay county, Altay, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, to winter pastures 100 kilometers away, forming a spectacular procession. CHINA DAILY Clockwise from top: Livestock workers provide guidance on lambing and young animal care at a herder's home in Sunan county, Gansu province; police officers help herders count and corral the sheep during the migration in Bortala; police officers and herders work together to unload the sheep, increasing the efficiency of the migration.