In pics: rice-fish co-culture system in east China's Zhejiang

The rice-fish co-culture system in Qingtian has a history of more than 1,300 years and was listed in the world's first group of the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) designated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in 2005.

Qingtian, in the southwestern part of Zhejiang, has sufficient water resources and a terraced landscape. The rice-fish co-culture system can bring handsome incomes to local farmers.

In 2021, the rice-fish co-culture system in Qingtian covered around 3,700 hectares of paddy fields, with an average rice yield of 7.2 tonnes per hectare. The total output value of rice and fish reached 265 million yuan (about 39.3 million U.S. dollars).

In this aerial photo, villagers celebrate in traditional costumes as they start ploughing and release fish fry into rice fields in Xiaozhoushan Township, Qingtian County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 11, 2020.

In this aerial photo, farmers carry buckets of fish fry before releasing them into rice fields in Xiaozhoushan Township, Qingtian County, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 11, 2020.

Aerial photo taken on July 18, 2022 shows a protection area of the rice-fish co-culture system in Qingtian County, east China's Zhejiang Province.​

China's Caofeidian Port sees rise in cargo throughput Haikou prepares for 2nd China Int'l Consumer Products Expo