Observation | Duck Meat Poised to Become Mainstream Consumer Meat—An Exclusive Interview with Hou Shuisheng, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering

Hou ShuSheng, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering

Against the backdrop of tight feed grain supplies in our country, developing poultry industries such as chickens, ducks, and geese—known for their high feed conversion efficiency—is an inevitable trend to ensure a reliable supply of high-quality animal protein for our people.

Over the past five years, China has annually marketed more than 4.5 billion meat ducks, making duck meat production the country's third-largest meat industry—behind pork and chicken.

Disease-resistant breeding and the use of cutting-edge technologies in duck breeding are both essential for industry development and represent key future directions.

Text | Hou Yongsun, Reporter for *Outlook* News Weekly

Establishing the "Big Food Vision"—seeking calories and protein from plants, animals, and microorganisms—is a crucial approach to addressing China's food security challenges in the 21st century.

Pork is China's primary meat consumed, accounting for more than 55% of total meat consumption. However, pigs have relatively low feed conversion efficiency, making them the livestock species that consume the most feed grain. How can we meet the nation's daily meat demand of 230,000 tons—enough to satisfy the needs of 1.4 billion people—while ensuring China's food security?

Since the implementation of reform and opening-up policies, China's livestock and poultry farming industry has experienced rapid growth, providing ample supplies of meat, eggs, milk, and other essential food products to the general population. The meat duck industry, a traditionally distinctive sector in China, boasts an enormous production scale. Over the past five years, China has averaged more than 4.5 billion ducks marketed annually, making duck meat production the country's third-largest meat industry—after pork and chicken—and playing a vital role in ensuring a steady, high-quality supply of animal protein for the nation.

“Ensuring a reliable supply of high-quality animal protein requires access to superior livestock and poultry breeds that are independently controllable—this is a critical issue for national food and grain security,” Hou ShuSheng, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, researcher at the Beijing Institute of Animal Science & Veterinary Medicine of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and chief scientist of the National Waterfowl Industry Technology System, told reporters from *Outlook Weekly*. He added that boosting the transformation, upgrading, quality enhancement, and efficiency gains in the poultry industry—including chickens, ducks, and geese—is an urgent priority for Chinese researchers and agricultural authorities.

"White meat" is healthier than "red meat."

Hou Shuicheng: Globally, meat consumption has shifted toward poultry as the primary protein source, with poultry consumption steadily increasing in nearly every country. According to data from the "OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2021–2030," during the period of 2018–2020, poultry accounted for 43.2% of total meat consumption, followed by pork at 33.1%, and beef and lamb combined making up 23.7%. As a result, poultry is rapidly becoming the mainstream choice among consumers.

In the early days of China's reform and opening-up, pork accounted for more than 90% of the nation's total meat consumption. Today, however, pork’s share has dropped to around 55%–56%, while poultry consumption now makes up 32% and beef and lamb account for 13%. For residents in southern China, duck meat remains the primary source of protein. In 2020, China produced 10.64 million tons of duck meat, representing approximately 12% of the country’s total meat output and 34.6% of its overall poultry production. As people increasingly prioritize healthier diets and amid growing pressures on China’s natural resources, poultry—especially duck meat—is set to become an even bigger staple on dining tables across the country.

From a healthy eating perspective, "white meat" is healthier than "red meat." According to the World Health Organization, duck and goose meat are among the healthiest types of meat when compared to other poultry and livestock. Under similar protein and nutritional quality conditions as pork, chicken, beef, and lamb, duck meat contains approximately 65% unsaturated fatty acids—about twice as much as beef or lamb, 1.5 times more than pork, and 25% higher than chicken. Since unsaturated fatty acids help regulate blood lipids, reduce blood clots, and support immune function, duck meat stands out as an even healthier food choice.

From the perspective of feed conversion efficiency, pigs have a feed-to-meat ratio of 3:1—meaning it takes 3 kilograms of feed to produce 1 kilogram of meat. In contrast, poultry require less feed but grow more efficiently, with ducks achieving a remarkable feed-to-meat ratio as low as 1.85:1. Notably, poultry consume about 60% less feed compared to pigs and only 25%–30% of what cattle or sheep need. Moreover, when raised in a three-dimensional farming system, poultry can produce twice as much meat—or even more—per square meter than pigs. Against the backdrop of tight domestic feed grain supplies in China, boosting the poultry industry—particularly chickens, ducks, and geese, which boast high feed conversion efficiency—is emerging as a critical strategy to ensure a steady supply of high-quality animal protein for our population while simultaneously encouraging a shift away from excessive pork consumption.

Reclaim 35% of the market share

Hou Shuicheng: Market demand for meat duck varieties typically falls into two main categories: meat-and-fat types and lean-meat types. Different consumption preferences call for distinct breeds of ducks. For instance, Peking roast duck requires ducks with thick subcutaneous fat and high intramuscular fat content—qualities that give the carcass elasticity—since the duck is roasted during preparation. In contrast, salted duck, braised duck, and soy-sauce duck varieties favor ducks with thin skin and a high breast-to-leg meat ratio. At the Beijing Institute of Animal Science & Veterinary Medicine under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, where I work, our research team has developed two specialized duck breeds tailored to these specific needs: the Zhongchu Prairie White Feathered Meat Duck and the Zhongxin White Feathered Meat Duck, both ideal for making salted or braised duck products. Additionally, we’ve created the Z-type Beijing Duck breed, which doesn’t require force-feeding and is perfect for preparing authentic Peking roast duck. Nationwide, an average of 4.5 billion meat ducks are produced annually, with approximately 1.4 to 1.5 billion of those being our specially bred varieties. That means roughly one out of every three ducks consumed in China today comes from our innovative breeding programs.

Our newly developed Z-type Peking duck breed, which requires no force-feeding, has completely eliminated the need for traditional gavage in raising these ducks. Historically, China’s Peking duck varieties were primarily raised for roast duck production, but in the later stages of rearing, they relied heavily on manual force-feeding to boost fat deposition—a process that was not only labor-intensive but also inefficient. On average, a skilled worker could only manage to feed about 800 ducks per day, leading to significant time constraints. Moreover, this method often caused damage to the ducks’ delicate digestive tracts, resulting in a 5% mortality rate. And let’s not forget the massive waste of feed—by the end of the feeding period, each duck required as much as 600 grams of feed daily. Thanks to our continuous efforts in breeding and improving this strain, we’ve successfully developed the Z-type Peking duck, which can achieve optimal fat deposition simply by freely consuming around 250 grams of feed per day. This breakthrough not only saves labor and feed costs but also enhances animal welfare by avoiding the harmful practice of force-feeding. Today, annual consumption of Beijing roast duck has soared to 200 million birds. Meanwhile, our innovative new Peking duck variety already accounts for 70–80 million birds produced each year. What’s more, farmers are increasingly turning to our high-quality breeder ducks to raise their own commercial meat ducks, further boosting productivity and sustainability in the industry.

Hou ShuSheng ： In the past, in regions such as the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, South China, and Southwest China, farmers traditionally raised Muscovy ducks to produce salted duck, braised duck, and soy-sauce duck. However, Muscovy ducks have a long growth cycle—taking 85 to 100 days before they’re ready for market—which leads to high production costs and low farming profitability. In the 1980s, Cherry Valley Farms from the UK successfully leveraged China’s Beijing Duck genetic resources to develop a new breed of lean meat-type ducks with exceptional feed conversion efficiency. This innovative variety grows remarkably fast, reaching market weight in just 40 to 50 days. Moreover, it boasts superior traits such as high lean meat yield and low fat content. Since its introduction to China, this high-performing duck quickly dominated the domestic lean meat duck market, becoming the primary raw material for producing salted, braised, and soy-sauce duck products—and has essentially monopolized the Chinese market for the past three decades. Under the fierce competition from Cherry Valley ducks, the domestic Muscovy duck market has significantly shrunk. As a result, Muscovy ducks are no longer commercially viable for large-scale farming or widespread promotion, leaving them primarily maintained today for conservation purposes rather than commercial breeding.

Our team has leveraged China's genetic resources of meat ducks, applying quantitative genetics breeding principles and cutting-edge breeding technologies to develop the Zhongchu Prairie White-Feathered Meat Duck. This breed boasts a feed-to-meat ratio of 1.92:1 and is primarily used for whole-product processing into delicacies like salted duck, sauce duck, and fragrant tea duck. We’ve also created the Zhongxin White-Feathered Meat Duck, which is even more efficient in feed utilization, achieving a remarkable feed-to-meat ratio of 1.85:1. This variety is specifically tailored for producing high-quality, portioned duck meat products. Compared to Cherry Valley ducks—another popular breed that typically reaches market weight at 40 days with a body weight of 3.1 kg—our newly developed meat duck breeds offer significant advantages: they require less feed, yield higher lean meat percentages, enjoy superior survival rates, and demonstrate exceptional tolerance to roughage-based diets.

Promoting new varieties requires a close integration of industry, academia, and research. In 2007, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Finance jointly launched the establishment of the National Modern Agricultural Industry Technology System. In 2009, the waterfowl industry was incorporated into this initiative, leading to the creation of the National Waterfowl Industry Technology System. This system has successfully attracted leading enterprises to participate, fostering even stronger collaboration between researchers, businesses, and market demands—and accelerating the commercialization of scientific and technological innovations. For instance, the Zhongxin White-Feathered Meat Duck breed we’ve developed and promoted was jointly created in partnership with Shandong New Hope Liuhe Group Co., Ltd. Nationally, our lean-meat-type duck varieties now hold a market share exceeding 35%, and they are poised for wider adoption across China’s major duck-producing regions in the future.

On August 31, 2021, duck farmers in Lihua Village, Xialiu Town, Hengdong County, Hunan Province, were letting their ducks roam freely. Photo by Cao Zhengping / This Publication

Breeding new varieties is an ever-evolving challenge.

Hou Shuicheng: In terms of breeding technology, we previously relied on conventional breeding methods rooted in quantitative genetics. For instance, techniques such as hybridization, inbreeding, and reciprocal selection were employed. Depending on the specific traits of different meat duck lines and our breeding objectives, we utilized approaches like phenotypic selection, family-based selection, and even composite index selection to develop new meat duck varieties. This process required monitoring around 80 key trait indicators. Additionally, by crossing different lines, we successfully addressed the longstanding trade-offs between reproductive efficiency and resilience—specifically, resistance to stress, disease, and improvements in meat production. Today, however, we’re taking a more targeted approach: combining traditional breeding methods with genotypic or genomic selection tailored to the specific traits of meat ducks, which has dramatically sped up the overall breeding process.

In the future, disease-resistant breeding and the use of cutting-edge technologies in duck breeding are both essential for industry development and represent key directions for advancement.

In disease-resistant breeding, given the industry's ongoing challenges of frequent and widespread poultry outbreaks, it is essential to enhance ducks' immune and disease-resistance capabilities through targeted breeding programs—thus addressing the critical issue of controlling infectious diseases in meat ducks.

Take duck viral hepatitis, for instance—a highly lethal, acute infectious disease in ducks that has caused significant economic losses to the duck farming industry. In recent years, genotype 3 of the duck hepatitis A virus has emerged as the most widespread pathogen responsible for duck viral hepatitis in Asia's commercial meat duck farms. Our research suggests that enhancing the innate immune response of breeding ducks could hold the key to addressing this persistent problem. Focusing specifically on the molecular mechanisms underlying differential resistance among ducklings, we utilized a specialized Beijing duck line known for its robust resistance to genotype 3 of the duck hepatitis A virus, alongside a control line lacking such resistance. Through advanced techniques like genome-wide association analysis and transcriptome profiling, we discovered that the expression of the NOD1 gene is positively correlated with the replication of genotype 3 of the duck hepatitis A virus. Moreover, infection with this virus activates NOD1 and its downstream genes, triggering heightened inflammation and liver damage. These findings not only provide critical insights into the pathogenesis of genotype 3 infection but also lay a solid theoretical foundation for developing more resilient duck breeds through targeted breeding programs. If these breakthroughs can be successfully translated into practical applications, they will undoubtedly have far-reaching implications for the global duck farming industry.

In cutting-edge breeding, techniques such as genotypic selection and genomic selection can be employed to enhance feed conversion efficiency in ducks, enabling the development of ducks that eat less yet grow more efficiently, mature faster, and produce superior-quality meat. However, poultry have a uniquely complex reproductive physiological structure, making gene-editing technology for meat ducks particularly challenging. As a result, the current pool of biotechnological tools available for duck breeding remains limited.

In recent years, we’ve embarked on some explorations in molecular breeding technology for meat ducks, leading to the organization and implementation of the "Thousand Ducks X-Group Project." During the selection process, we identified a super gene—IGF2BP1, the major-effect gene responsible for increasing the body size of Beijing ducks. Surprisingly, this mutant variant allows ducks to gain 15% more weight within the same rearing period, while also improving feed conversion efficiency by 6%. Previous studies have shown that the signaling pathway and mechanism regulating body size via IGF2BP1 are widely conserved across various livestock and poultry species. If we can harness this unique regulatory mechanism—specifically, how the distant mutation sustainably enhances IGF2BP1 expression—in other breeds or even different livestock species, it may open up entirely new avenues for future advancements in livestock and poultry breeding. These groundbreaking studies have already laid a robust foundation for both waterfowl genetics and multi-omics research.

Hou Shuicheng: First, we must fully implement the "Grand Food Vision" concept proposed by the Party Central Committee. Over the past few decades, influenced by the idea that "stability in food supply depends on pigs," China's livestock industry has been dominated by pig farming—essentially a "one-pig-fits-all" approach. Government funding for infrastructure and research has largely centered around pigs, while neglecting the development of many of our country’s traditional livestock sectors. Given China’s large population, scarce land resources, insufficient feed ingredients, competition between livestock and humans for grain, and heavy environmental pressures, ensuring food security requires guaranteeing an adequate and diverse supply of essential foods—including meat, vegetables, fruits, and aquatic products. In particular, to meet the growing demand for high-quality animal protein among our people, we must prioritize the development of poultry industries like chickens, ducks, and geese, which boast superior feed conversion efficiency.

Secondly, we look forward to increased research investment from government departments in the poultry breeding sector. China’s meat duck industry is already massive—by 2020, the country’s annual output of market-ready ducks nearly reached 5 billion, accounting for more than 80% of the global total. The value of just these marketed ducks soared to 132 billion yuan, while the industry’s overall output exceeded 200 billion yuan. We hope that during the "14th Five-Year Plan" and other major national initiatives such as the National Key R&D Program and the Bio-breeding Special Project—including milestones like 2030 and 2035—meat duck breeding projects will be prioritized. This will help drive breakthroughs in addressing critical scientific challenges and mastering core technologies essential for advancing China’s meat duck breeding capabilities. In particular, efforts should focus on strengthening the development of advanced breeding technologies, including genomic selection and gene-editing techniques, as well as research into disease resistance and quality-focused breeding methods. By nurturing and expanding a robust science and technology workforce, we can ensure that government investments in this area align with the meat duck industry’s vital role in supporting China’s broader societal and economic growth.

Moreover, variety certification is only the starting point—what’s needed now is to strengthen the ongoing breeding philosophy. After a new variety has been officially approved, it still requires market testing. Based on market feedback, breeders should continuously refine and select for traits such as feed conversion efficiency, meat production performance, reproductive capabilities, and disease resistance. This ongoing process will help sustainably enhance the variety’s competitive edge and expand its market share. Throughout this journey, research institutions must collaborate closely with industry partners to ensure mutual benefits, while also prioritizing robust protection of intellectual property rights.

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