China's unique farming method: Cultivating paddy, farming fish, raising ducks on same land

By Necva Tastan

ISTANBUL (AA) – Various countries use different agricultural ways to harvest rice, but certain parts of China employ a centuries-old practice that is environmentally benign and cost-effective – cultivating paddy, farming fish, and raising ducks on the same farmland.

Amid the rice terraces of Dayutang Village in southwest China's Yunnan province, farmer Li Zhengfu continues an agricultural technique handed down for over 1,000 years among the native Hani people, Xinhua news agency reported on Monday.

Rice cultivation, fish farming, and duck raising – all are in the awe-inspiring terraces.​​​​​​​

It is a way of life that tells a story of ecological harmony, traditional knowledge, and modern innovation, the media outlet said.

In 2013, the Cultural Landscape of Honghe Hani Rice Terraces was listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Terraces fall down the slopes of the towering Ailao Mountains to the banks of the Honghe River.

Over the past 1,300 years, the Hani people have developed a complex system of channels to bring water from the forested mountaintops to the terraces. This forms a symbiotic agricultural ecology of forests, settlements, terraces, and rivers, the news agency said.

However, thousands of kilometers distant from Yunnan province, a farmer in Ping'an township in China's northeastern region of Jilin also reared over 1,000 ducks in the paddy fields to eliminate the weed.

Over 1,000 ducks were raised to remove weeds from the paddy fields, the China Daily reported recently, citing the farm’s owner Li Xueming.

The farm owner cultivates rice and raises ducks on the same land. This practice allows him to reduce costs while also generating income.

“We have practiced the unique, integrated rice-duck farming system for more than 10 years,” Li was quoted in the daily as saying.

Ducks play a vital role in the ecosystem as they consume weeds and insects; their movement in the water promotes plant growth, and their droppings act as natural fertilizers. “We can produce high-quality organic rice without using pesticides or chemical fertilizers,” he added.

Chinese farmers have been raising ducks and rice in irrigated paddy fields for centuries, with documented evidence dating back 600 years.

According to the National Geographic website, farmers abandoned traditional land cultivation methods when they sought quick solutions such as synthetic nitrogen fertilizers and chemical pesticides. ​​​​​​​