A farmer in Guyang experiences an astragalus bumper harvest. [Photo/Baotou news network]

Astragalus wine produced by a local brand. [Photo/Baotou news network]

Baotou Longju Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Technology Co becomes the first pilot food manufacturer in Baotou to use astragalus as a common food ingredient to produce substitute tea. [Photo/Baotou news network]

Guyang county in Baotou has fully exploited the development potential of astragalus in recent years, creating local brands of astragalus and promoting the high-quality development of the astragalus industry.

Astragalus is a commonly used bulk medicinal material in traditional Chinese medicine. It is not only widely used in domestic clinical departments, but also has considerable influence in the international medicinal plant market. It was once China's top Chinese medicinal material export.

As an important production area of astragalus in Inner Mongolia autonomous region, the moderately dry climate in Guyang county is suitable for growing high-quality astragalus.

Guyang began cultivating astragalus in 1974. The first domestically pioneered horizontal seeding technology for astragalus has gradually formed and been promoted, laying the foundation for large-scale planting and production.

In 2021, the county's astragalus planting area was 4,000 hectares, with an annual output of 12,000 metric tons and annual output value of 200 million yuan ($29.61 million), bringing vitality to the once poor local area.

With the approval of the State Administration for Market Regulation and the National Health and Health Commission, Guyang county, as part of the first batch of pilot areas in Inner Mongolia in 2022, will carry out pilot work in the management of astragalus as food and traditional Chinese medicinal material. A total of 11 enterprises have so far qualified to become pilot management enterprises.