William Ding, founder of the Chinese Internet portal NetEase, says the company will invest at last CNY10 million to set up a pig farm in Zhejiang province and establish a website to connect the Internet industry with agricultural pursuits.

According to an article on Chinese technology website ChinaByte.com, NetEase has reportedly completed the preliminary investigation and research work. It will adopt the breeding model with standardized production lines and feed the pigs with eco-friendly feed. NetEase, itself, has issued no response to this article, so it is still unclear if ChinaByte.com is hamming up this story.

Experts in the breeding industry say that China's current pork industry is in recession and many factories have even made losses. However, the high-end breeding market has a certain development space. Ding also says in the article that scientific breeding methods will produce better products.

Previously, at an Internet conference held in September 2008, Ding revealed that he would enter the agricultural market and NetEase already contacted some agricultural research institutions in Zhejiang at that time.

It is unclear yet how investors will react to their Internet-focused company moving to rural pursuits in China.

Related Links:

• http://www.miit.gov.cn

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1. By Dr MIke A Varley (Swine Consultant) – February 22, 2009 at 2:43 pm

   Can you please forward this note to Mr William Ding please – My thanks
   Dr Mike A Varley Swine Consultant

   Dear Mr William ing CEO NetEase

   My name is Dr Mike Varley from England – here in Shanghai, visiting
   for
   a week in China. I am an international swine consultant and have
   previously worked as a nutrition professor in England. Swine
   nutriton
   and production are my expertise. I read with great interest this
   afternoon in the China Daily newspaper, the article on William Ding's
   Organic Farmin Swine Enterprise. (NetEase). I think this is a
   tremendous development for the Chinese pork and food industrty and I
   wish William Ding every success with this. We have a lot of
   experience
   in the UK with this type of organic and extensive swine production
   and
   the consumers just love the meat and the idea of the production
   systems. They will therefore pay a premium price for this type of
   food
   and also the supermarkets have to pay the farmer more for the pigs.

   The trick is in both the genetics and in the feeding and nutrition of
   these pigs and we try to encourage more intra-muscular fat into the
   meat
   which gives it a unique flavour. It is also possible to add value to
   the meat by including in the feeding certain ingredients that add
   flavour that consumers like. It is also possible to make these
   systems quite low cost because ofte outdoor housing and rearing is
   used
   to accommodate the breeding and reared pigs even to slaughter
   wieghts.

   This could therefore be the 'Next Big Thing' in pork for human food
   in
   China and I know how the Chinese people love pork. I have visited
   China myself many times over the last 20 years and hve seen great
   changes – I think this change will bring some new opportunities for
   both farmers and for consumers.

   I would love ot be able to contact William Ding directly if his email
   address is available but I also hope you can pass htis message to
   him
   for me.

   My Thanks

   Dr Mike A Varley
   The Pig Technolgy Company
   Yorkshire, England
   tel +44 7515 288 167
   email mikeavarley@tiscali.co.uk

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