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Prosperity built upon farming pigs
By:China Daily
update:May 23,2017
May 22,2017--Nyingchi, in the Tibet autonomous region's southeast, is known for its pigs. For families living in the city's more remote villages, pork sales contribute a key part of their incomes during winter.
 
Tibetan pig meat is more expensive than other types of pork sold in local markets, because it is believed to be healthier and better tasting.
 
Farming families in Nyingchi prefecture each typically raise 10 to 15 pigs, which are said to be domesticated from wild boar. To this day, these pigs still forage in the forests and open areas as their wild ancestors.
 
The meat of Tibetan pigs is regarded as a delicacy, which farmers preserve by drying and offer to important guests.
 
Unlike most farming families who only raise the animals to meet their family's needs, Dawa Tsering operates a Tibetan pig-raising cooperative.
 
"Most pork sold in the markets is not real Tibetan pork," he said.
 
"This disappoints me, and I have vowed to bring authentic Tibetan pork to the markets."
 
As Tibetan Buddhism promotes vegetarianism, the raising of pigs is often frowned upon in Tibet. But Dawa said he has made his peace with this.
 
"I am an ordinary person, I am aware of the importance of religion in my life, but it is hard for me to follow all religious rules in my daily life," he said.
 
The 40-year-old has been in the pig-raising business since 2008 and now owns one of the biggest pig farms in Nyingchi.
 
His cooperative, which began in 2012 with five impoverished families and 28 pigs, was not a success at first. A lack of experience and poor facilities almost caused him to give up.
 
The farm is relatively isolated, without a reliable supply of water or electricity, and some pigs froze to death during the first winter. Afterward, to ensure the animal's safety, Dawa allowed some of them to live in his bedroom.
 
"The little pigs were so naughty and always climbed on my bed. I had to wash my bedding every day," he said.
 
The farmer found his first major client in 2013 during a visit to Shannan prefecture in Tibet, where he secured an order for more than 140 pigs.
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