From silkworm cocoons to cultural and tourism IP: Industrial revitalization of China Lezhi

On June 20, 2025, the Shanghai Television Documentary Creation Center team, in collaboration with BBC Studios Natural History Department producer Paul Williams (producer of BBC documentaries "Earth Pulse" and "Green Planet"), visited the "Mulberry Capital of China" and conducted on-site visits to places such as the Hongqi Silk Factory, the Mulberry Breeding Shed, the Intangible Cultural Heritage Tea Stir Frying Technology Inheritance Workshop, and the Chinese Mulberry Capital Culture Exhibition Hall. This not only visually presented the full chain development of the sericulture industry in Lezhi County, but also a vivid practice of traditional and modern interweaving, cultural and economic resonance, injecting international communication momentum into the modernization development of the sericulture industry in Lezhi County.

Entering the standardized sericulture greenhouse of "Dingsheng" in Lezhi County, the scientifically planned ventilation system and lighting design are creating an ideal growth environment for silkworm babies. On a large silkworm rack, fifth instar silkworms are playing the prelude to a bountiful harvest with rustling sounds - using scientific feed ratio, semi-automatic operation and other technologies, a single silkworm egg can achieve a yield of 45 to 50 kilograms, which is 15% higher than the traditional mode. According to the person in charge of the greenhouse, three batches of 1200 silkworm eggs have been distributed by 2025, driving more than 1100 villagers to find employment on site. It is expected to produce 54 tons of cocoons and exceed 3.78 million yuan in output value. With the government's subsidy policy of 2 yuan/kg, the actual income of sericulture farmers can reach 72 yuan/kg for the third batch of cocoons in the second season.

At the intangible cultural heritage tea workshop, freshly picked mulberry leaves need to undergo withering within 2-5 hours and continue to undergo withering. In the mist of high-temperature hot air equipment, the inheritors of intangible cultural heritage presented an elegant "symphony" of fingertip tea flavor with a tea frying pot as the stage, combined with the traditional technique of "three kills and three rubs+low-temperature baking". The fragrance gradually settled, turning into a mellow burnt aroma and a sweet aftertaste. The tea leaves brewed in this way also received frequent praise from the visiting team for their "elegant and mellow" taste. The China Mulberry City Culture Exhibition Hall presents a panoramic view of the cultural depth of Le Zhi's "Thousand Year Sericulture Hometown", from modern silkworm portraits to the evolution of modern mulberry mushroom cultivation techniques。

At the silk quilt making workshop, the inheritor is carrying out the "stretching" process. Two craftsmen each hold a corner of a thin silk sheet and use the technique of interweaving warp and weft to stack the silk layer by layer, forming a fluffy and cloud like quilt. This pure handmade silk quilt has a fiber length of up to 1200 meters and a warmth retention rate 30% higher than ordinary cotton quilts. By 2024, the output value of related products has exceeded 400000 yuan.

The industrial model here combines traditional wisdom with modern innovation, "exclaimed the creation center team during their visit. The visit ofinternational media this time is not only a recognition of the integrated development of "sericulture+cultural tourism+technology" in Lezhi County, but also opens up the possibility of cooperation with the global natural documentary field. In the future, Lezhi County will take this visit as an opportunity to continue deepening the development path of "sericulture culture IP+digital agriculture+cross-border dissemination", so that the millennium sericulture industry can radiate new vitality in rural revitalization.

（Text and pictures: Du Jiarui, Gui Binkai）

翻译：四川大学 Aeel

Translation: Sichuan University Aeel

审核：西安翻译学院刘洪明

Reviewed by: Liu Hongming from Xi'an Translation Institute