Chongqing- As a special geographical delicacy of China, Chengkou Bacon will be upgraded into three grades, including black label, golden label, and green label, bringing different mellow, juicy tastes for bacon lovers worldwide, according to a press conference on September 28.

The best black-label products use local pigs raised in free range for more than ten months at an altitude of 1200 meters and smoked on slow fire for more than 90 days, making foodies drool with gluttony over the delicious meat.

Chinese bacon, also known as La Rou, is a food that will be served on the tables of almost every family during the new year.

Chengkou Bacon is particularly famous in China, with the selection of pork from half-wild captive pigs and a unique bacon taste. The lean part of bacon is chewy and flavorful, while the fat part is soft but not greasy.

After being pickled with dozens of ingredients and herbs for two to three days, people slowly smoke semi-finished meat with flavored herbs and spices. The process will last two months to get a beautiful color and flavored smell.

A thousand years of flavor has a new vitality

Chengkou County is a key county for national rural revitalization. Chengkou Bacon already has more than a thousand years of history, becoming a symbol of Chengkou County, sold in Russia, Japan, Australia, and other markets worldwide.

It is estimated that each ton of Chengkou Bacon sold can increase the income of 10 rural households by 3,000 yuan (about 414.2 U.S. dollars). 

Still, Chengkou Bacon needs innovation and development. The local government plans to lead producers and build new brand protection and marketing system. Based on different production cycles and smoking crafts, Chengkou Bacon will be upgraded into three grades, including black label, gold label, and green label.

"The new Chengkou Bacon will be on the market before the end of the year," said a representative in Chengkou County. "The production scale will reach 15,000 tons in three to five years, driving the output value to over two billion yuan."

The Selenium-enriched environment produces unique flavors

Chengkou county is located in the hinterland of Daba Mountain and the northern part of Chongqing. It has an altitude of 800 to 1500 meters, an annual average temperature of 14.3℃, and more than 360 days of excellent air quality.

The county serves as one of the two natural Selenium-enriched belts in China. Their local pigs grow in natural Selenium-enriched fodder, providing the best raw material for Chengkou Bacon.

"Chengkou is widely known as an eco-climate pearl of China, with negative oxygen ion content up to 25,000 per cubic centimeter, providing unique natural conditions for the low-temperature fermentation process of Chengkou Bacon," said Wang Qigui, vice president of Chongqing Academy of Animal Sciences.

Wang continued the soil selenium content is seven times the national average, and during the smoking process, the room temperature is kept at about 12℃. Through low-temperature fermentation, rich microbial flora is formed, bringing the natural and unique flavor of Chengkou Bacon.

selenium enrichment