Eggs are pictured at a modern layer farm in Shannan City, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, July 4, 2025. (Xinhua/Jiang Mengchen)

LHASA, July 4 (Xinhua) -- Southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region has achieved complete self-sufficiency in fresh egg production, as its largest modern layer farm commenced full operations in Shannan City on Friday.

Located at 3,600 meters above sea level and built with a total investment of 850 million yuan (about 118.8 million U.S. dollars), the facility now produces over 1.5 million eggs daily, fully meeting the region's demand.

Market estimates put local egg consumption between 1.2 million and 1.5 million per day. Previously, less than 15 percent of eggs were locally sourced, with the majority transported from neighboring provinces such as Gansu and Sichuan.

"This is the world's first sustainably operated layer farm located above 3,000 meters," said Zhang Honglin, the farm's director. "In the second phase, breeding capacity has been expanded to 2 million hens, maintaining daily output exceeding 1.5 million eggs and achieving 100 percent self-sufficiency across all supply channels," Zhang added.

Overcoming the challenges of high-altitude conditions was crucial. During 2021 trials, 40,000 of the 112,000 transported chicks perished. "Xizang's environment is unique. International ventilation standards failed here," explained Zhang Li, livestock equipment supplier and design director at Big Dutchman China.

The farm combines German intelligent breeding systems and Dutch environmental controls with proprietary ventilation technology that optimizes oxygen levels, temperature and humidity, resulting in industry-leading survival rates.

The region's intense ultraviolet radiation, dramatic temperature fluctuations, and arid air create natural sterilization conditions. As a result, the eggs show zero traces of Salmonella and fewer than 10 CFU/g of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria, meeting premium standards for raw consumption.

The project has injected 87 million yuan into the local economy through wages and machinery fees, employed 142 Tibetan workers, and cultivated a batch of local technical and management professionals. They also provided training for local egg farmers.

"Free-range hens used to lose their feathers often," said Pema Yangjen, a local herder. "Now, technicians teach us advanced methods and provide free chicks. Our incomes have risen significantly."

A complete industrial chain has been established, including 3,000 mu (200 hectares) of high-altitude feed corn cultivation, organic fertilizer production, and value-added products like soft-boiled eggs and air-dried chicken.

"The farm will help stabilize meat and egg supplies and prices in Xizang," said Feng Jing, associate researcher at the Xizang Academy of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Sciences.

Zhang Honglin said the farm will help egg production in high-altitude areas in neighboring Qinghai and Sichuan provinces by providing breeding solutions and promote sustainable development of plateau husbandry. ■

Eggs are pictured at a modern layer farm in Shannan City, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, July 4, 2025. (Xinhua/Jiang Mengchen)

A staff member sorts eggs at a modern layer farm in Shannan City, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, July 4, 2025. (Xinhua/Jiang Mengchen)