Recently the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs announced the 2023 list of 60 national key counties for the development of leisure agriculture. Changsha County and Suxian District from Hunan Province were shortlisted.

Thriving businesses are a key to rural revitalization. Leisure agriculture involves primary, secondary and tertiary industries, and is of great significance to promoting the construction of beautiful villages, rural economic development and comprehensive rural revitalization. Since 2021, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has designated 60 key counties for leisure agriculture across the country every year, aiming to build pilot areas for the high-quality development of leisure agriculture, boosting the modernization of agriculture and rural areas. At present, there are 17,300 leisure agriculture business entities in Hunan. Leisure agriculture has become an important source of support for the revitalization of Hunan's rural industries and an important channel for farmers to increase their income.

Changsha County ranks among the top 100 counties in terms of basic economic competitiveness in China, and rural leisure tourism is one of leading industries in the county. The county has formulated the "Development Plan for Leisure Agriculture and Rural Tourism of Changsha County", and has implemented the overall layout of "one lake, two rivers, one circle and two districts." Changsha County has also created a number of beautiful and harmonious rural demonstration areas with desirable living and working conditions, such as Xiangfeng and Jinlong villages in Jinjing Town, and the county has witnessed a surge in rural tourism demonstration sites such as Xiangfeng Tea Expo Garden. In 2022, Changsha County's leisure agriculture and rural tourism achieved a total operating income of 4.6 billion yuan, with 10.2 million tourist visits. These two figures ranked among the top nationwide.

As a tourism core area in southern Hunan, Suxian District boasts four national 4A-level tourist attractions including the Suxian Ridge and Gaoyiling Tourist Area, a national internet-famous site. Suxian District has been selected as the most beautiful county (district) in China for many years. At present, more than 73% of administrative villages in the district have met the standards for building beautiful countryside, and 21 star-rated farms have been built, including two national five-star farms and eight provincial five-star ones. In 2022, there were 335 leisure agricultural business entities in Suxian District, achieving an income of 490 million yuan, an increase of 28.9% over 2021.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Xiao Juan

Chinese source: hunan.gov.cn