The project contributed to the establishment of a competence network for climate and environmentally friendly livestock production. The purpose was to develop a more environmentally friendly orientation of livestock farming and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by livestock production in China.

The overall goal was to raise awareness of the climate and environmental impacts of livestock production and of reducing the negative impact of livestock production on climate and the environment in China and Germany.

Therefore, the project aimed at establishing a competence network for climate and environmentally friendly livestock production in China and at disseminating innovative methods and technologies focusing on greenhouse gas reduction and to improve the environmental performance of local animal husbandry systems.

Target groups were the employees of government agencies, extension organizations and scientific and technical institutions in China. Project implementers on the Chinese side were the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA), the Foreign Economic Cooperation Center (FECC) as General Representative of MARA for the execution of international agriculture projects and the National Animal Husbandry Service (NAHS) as well as Chinese Research Stations and Institutes working on climate- and environmental-friendly livestock production in China.

The technical areas of the network were defined based on Chinese needs for a climate- and environmentally-friendly livestock production. Together with 3 selected livestock farms in China, a comprehensive assessment of their environmental and climate relevance was carried out. Based on this assessment, extension concepts with specific measures to improve the climate-related performance of the selected farms were developed. More than five innovative processes and technologies for reducing greenhouse gases and improving the environmental performance of the farms were identified.