CHANGCHUN, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- In northeast China's Changbai Mountains, where temperatures have plummeted to below freezing, ranches are blanketed in snow, while thousands of heads of cattle chew ensilage inside warm barns maintained at over 10 degrees Celsius.
After being slaughtered, aged, cut and processed, the meat of Yan yellow cattle, a breed featuring thick bones and muscular necks, is transformed into premium delicacies served to guests by international hotel chains in China.
"The key to a hamburger is its meat quality. I love this burger filled with this tender and flavorful beef," said a customer surnamed Wan when tasting Yan yellow cattle meat at a restaurant of the Sandalwood, Beijing - Marriott Executive Apartments.
Nestled in the foothills of the Changbai Mountains in Jilin Province, Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture is celebrated for its lush pastureland. Yanbian Animal Husbandry Development Company (YAHDC) pioneered the crossbreeding of Yanbian cattle with French Limousin to nurture Yan yellow cattle.
According to Lyu Aihui, the company's chairwoman, indigenous Yanbian cattle share genetic ties with the Korean hanwoo and Japanese wagyu breeds, which are prized for their tender meat and nutritional richness. However, Yanbian cattle traditionally suffer from low yields and slow reproduction.
"Hybridization preserves the meat quality while boosting nutritional elements like manganese," Lyu explained. "It also enables large-scale breeding, with the company's beef production reaching 3,500 tonnes in 2024."
The company has established 45 production bases in various townships of Yanbian -- helping over 10,000 husbandry households reap benefits through the rearing of Yan yellow cattle.
"In a good year, I earn up to 40,000 yuan (about 5,579 U.S. dollars)," said 62-year-old stockman Liu Jingyi. He added that YAHDC has been providing training for locals, distributing free frozen cattle semen, and procuring beef cattle at a reasonable price.
"Recognition from five-star hotels and their customers has boosted our confidence in the breed's future," said Liu.
Since 2011, Yan yellow beef has featured in the form of steaks and patties at Marriott International brands like the Ritz-Carlton and Renaissance Hotels in China. By 2017, the company had started to supply these hotels with semi-processed products of higher added value, including the likes of stir-fried beef and beef soup.
According to Wu Bin, a procurement staffer with Greater China for Marriott International, YAHDC is their first Chinese supplier of intensively processed agricultural and husbandry products.
Wu said cooperation between the two companies not only enriches hotel ingredient selection via juicy and nutritious beef, but also benefits Marriott's branding.
In 2024, the slaughter volume of beef cattle in Jilin had doubled from 260,000 to 520,000 over the previous year -- ranking fifth in China's provincial-level regions. To bolster the beef industry, the province has launched a series of policies and measures aimed at training farmers, promoting breeding, encouraging intensive processing of higher-value-added products and more.
According to Yao Qing, deputy head of the Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the city of Longjing in Yanbian, cooperation between local enterprises and international brands allows more people to learn about the advantages offered by Yan yellow cattle, while also contributing to optimizing cattle rearing and product development -- resulting in improved incomes for livestock farmers. ■
