River snail rice noodles from Liuzhou in China's Guangxi exported to 28 countries and regions

A villager shows river snails in a rice paddy in Maping village, Sanjiang county, Liuzhou city, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Photo/Li Ning)

River snail rice noodles, or luosifen in Chinese, which is a signature street food in Liuzhou city, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, reached markets in 28 countries and regions in 2022, according to Liuzhou customs.

In the first five months of 2023, Liuzhou customs handled 305 batches of luosifen worth nearly 50 million yuan ($6.95 million) for export, up 47 percent year on year.

Last year, Liuzhou guided districts and counties under its jurisdiction to vigorously produce raw materials of luosifen, including bamboo shoots, beans, river snails, and wood ears. The city recognized 20 demonstration bases covering a total area of 552,000 mu (36,800 hectares) for luosifen raw material production, which helped bring an average annual income increase of about 10,000 yuan to more than 200,000 rural residents.

With funding from China Tobacco Guangxi Industrial Co., Ltd., Maping village in Sanjiang county, Liuzhou built a rice-river snail co-culture demonstration base last year, fattening villagers' wallets by transferring land use rights and creating jobs.

"Last year, our village built a rice-river snail co-culture demonstration base covering 20 mu. We achieved a bumper harvest of river snails, which didn't affect rice yield. This boosted our confidence. This year, the base was expanded to 50 mu, and its output value is expected to exceed 200,000 yuan," said Gong Congling, Party secretary of Maping village.

Villagers select river snails in Maping village, Sanjiang county, Liuzhou city, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Photo/Li Ning)

Photo shows a rice-river snail co-culture demonstration base, which is built with funding from China Tobacco Guangxi Industrial Co., Ltd., in Maping village, Sanjiang county, Liuzhou city, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Photo/Li Ning)

Villagers release river snails into a rice paddy in Maping village, Sanjiang county, Liuzhou city, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Photo/Li Ning)