A groundbreaking smart breeding pig project in Yunnan Province, China, spearheaded by a 1997-born PhD student, is nearing full-scale production with a total investment of CNY 360 million (about USD 49.14 million). Located in Kunming’s Fumin County, the high-altitude intelligent pig breeding farm will house a core group of 1,800 great grandparent (GGP) sows, 4,000 GP sows, and 600 boars. The initiative is a collaboration between Yunnan Kunzhou Agricultural Technology and national-level breeding firm Meishan Wanjiahao. Central to the project is the DeepBLUP breeding system, China’s first AI-driven genomic selection platform certified by Huawei Ascend, designed to tackle long-standing challenges in domestic pig breeding. The founder, Yang Xidi, has a remarkable record of innovation and national recognition, and this venture is set to redefine the genetic advancement and production efficiency of China’s swine sector.
A high-altitude pig breeding facility in Kunming, Yunnan Province, is set to become a new benchmark in China’s swine genetics sector. The project, developed by Yunnan Kunzhou Agricultural Technology Development Co., Ltd., is entering the production phase following the signing of a breeding stock agreement with Meishan Wanjiahao Swine Breeding Co., Ltd., a recognized national core breeding farm.
With a total investment of CNY 360 million (about USD 49.14 million), the project is structured in three development phases. Once fully operational, it will comprise a core herd of 1,800 great grandparent (GGP) sows, a 4,000-head GP sow expansion unit, and a 600-boar station. Phase I, already completed with an investment of CNY 160 million (about USD 21.86 million), provides the foundation for one of China’s most advanced intelligent breeding farms.
The farm is located in Fumin County, Kunming, leveraging the high-altitude climate to optimize swine health and performance. It aims to become a national model for efficient, intelligent pig breeding.
Meishan Wanjiahao, the supplier of the breeding stock, has a strong track record in genetic advancement. In 2021, the company imported 1,030 GGP pigs from Canada’s Genesus and has since excelled in expanding and upgrading its genetic resources. This collaboration is expected to enhance the genetic utilization efficiency of China’s breeding pigs.
The partnership will also focus on frozen semen technology and genomic data sharing to drive joint innovation in intelligent pig breeding. Both parties envision building a top-tier genetic brand in southwestern China through deepened cooperation in breeding, R&D, and market integration.
The driving force behind the project is Yang Xidi, a leading figure in China’s emerging swine genetics sector.Born in 1997, he is currently a PhD candidate (Class of 2021) in Animal Genetics and Breeding at Sichuan Agricultural University. Despite his young age, Yang has participated in four national-level breeding projects and five state-funded research initiatives. He has received accolades including the Youth May Fourth Medal of Sichuan Province, two gold medals at the “Chuang Qingchun” National Entrepreneurship Competition, and was recently honored as a “2025 National Youth Pioneer.”
Driven by a deep passion for animal science and entrepreneurship, Yang began innovating in the livestock industry during his undergraduate years. His most notable achievement is the development of the DeepBLUP Big Data Breeding System.
DeepBLUP represents a breakthrough in overcoming the “bottleneck” of low efficiency and high dependency on imported pigs in China’s pig breeding sector. The platform integrates artificial intelligence with genomic selection, uniquely combining deep learning algorithms and breeding models. It addresses the challenges of large-scale data processing and low computational efficiency in traditional systems.
Notably, DeepBLUP is the first AI breeding model in China to be certified by Huawei’s Ascend computing platform. The system tackles critical bottlenecks in traditional breeding, such as massive data processing and low computational efficiency.It is currently deployed in six core breeding farms across Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, and it serves as the backbone of Yang’s larger project—a fully integrated “AI Breeding + Ecological Farming” swine production model.
AgriPost.CN – Your Second Brain in China’s Agri-food Industry, Empowering Global Collaborations in the Animal Protein Sector.
