Early on the morning of May 29th, Zhang Jianguo, a livestock farmer in Chunle Village, Kole Township, Hezhang County, Bijie City, opened his pen gate. With a gentle call, more than ten black-haired Kole pigs responded, their distinctive three facial folds prominent, and trotted out into the mountain fields, tails wagging. As he was busy working, his phone rang. A familiar voice with a Hunan accent came through the receiver: "Old Zhang, I'm at the farm gate, coming over to pick a few with good conformation."
The caller was Mr. Huang from Huaihua, Hunan. He is a long-time customer of Zhang Jianguo, making the cross-province trip to Kole Township several times a year specifically to purchase purebred Kole pigs. Why are Hunan merchants so keen on Hezhang Kole pigs? The answer lies in the unique, hardcore qualities of this ancient breed. Testing data shows that Kole pigs have a back muscle fat content 3.41 times that of ordinary pigs, and their back muscle oleic acid content is a remarkable 4.8 times higher. This unique composition gives Kole pork a fine, firm texture, rich fat aroma, and a mellow taste, making it a premium raw material for traditional cured meats.
Today, the value of this rare breed is increasingly recognized: it was included in the Ministry of Agriculture's Catalogue of Characteristic Agricultural Products of China in 2007. In 2024, the craft of making Kole pork bacon was added to Guizhou Province's sixth batch of provincial-level intangible cultural heritage representative project lists, achieving a dual empowerment of "ecological farming + intangible heritage craft."
After carefully inspecting the herd, Mr. Huang finalized his annual purchase order on the spot. Compared to his usual annual purchase of 200 head, this year's order was increased directly to 260 head. Relying on Kole pig farming, Zhang Jianguo's annual income exceeds one million yuan.
While mountain pastures nurture the quality breed, processing workshops carry forward the ancient craftsmanship. Inside the standardized processing workshop of Hezhang County Agricultural Specialty Product Development Co., Ltd., Meng Chao, a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage inheritor of Kole pork bacon making, is leading workers in smoking bacon. "Now the reputation of Kole pork cured products is growing," Meng Chao explained. "Merchants from places like Guangzhou and Hong Kong often place bulk orders." He noted that the company's annual orders for its cured meat product series have now surpassed 6 million yuan. While deepening its domestic market presence, the company is also actively connecting with overseas markets such as Singapore.
It is reported that the inventory of Kole pigs in Hezhang County has reached 89,300 head, with the annual comprehensive industry output value successfully breaking through 210 million yuan. This industry has engaged over 18,000 farming households across the county in raising the pigs. This year brings even more encouraging news: Hezhang County has allocated 4.5 million yuan in central government funds for rural vitalization, providing a subsidy of 1,000 yuan per breeding sow, with plans to expand the breeding sow population by 4,500 head this year.
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