(ECNS) -- Heilongjiang Province, known as China's "grain barn" and a major producer of rice and soybeans, is leveraging its fertile black soil and cold-region resources to develop specialty industries such as beef cattle and geese.
The county of Sunwu is building a large Angus cattle breeding base. Over 4,000 Angus breeding cattle imported from Australia have arrived at the ranch this year, with each animal tagged for traceability and breeding purposes, according to Wu Xiaoyun, brand director of Heizun Beef (Heilongjiang) Industry Management Group. The company first introduced about 3,000 purebred Angus cattle from Australia in 2016.
Specialty products from Heilongjiang are reaching overseas markets in various forms. Shengchang Seed Breeding Co., Ltd. in Suihua has sown its rice varieties on over 666,000 hectares across the province this year, with rice sold to Russia's Amur Region, Mongolia and Laos. In Bei'an, locally grown soybeans are processed for export, while the goose industry has expanded from farming to processing feathers for badminton shuttlecocks, with annual production capacity reaching 6 million shuttlecocks, some of which are exported to the Republic of Korea.
According to Harbin Customs, Heilongjiang's foreign trade reached 171.24 billion yuan (about $23.8 billion) in the first half of 2026, up 7.2% year on year and setting a new record for the period. The provincial government has called for expanding exports of local products to enhance their international competitiveness.
At the border trade center in the Heihe pilot free trade zone, Russian soybeans, oats and confectionery are traded across the border. Heihe's border trade volume reached about 229 million yuan (about $31.8 million) in the first half of 2026.
A cross-border cable car project is also under construction and expected to begin trial operations by the end of the year, providing a new way for people to travel between the two countries.
(By Tang Yuxian)
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