Abstract

China’s appetite for meat products has grown over the last few decades, and this has coincided with a worsening of the degradation of grasslands. Many governmental initiatives have been put forth as a result to re-establish balance between pastoral livestock production and the grassland ecosystem. This paper examines the widespread eco-environmental programme known as the Subsidy and Incentive System for Grassland Conservation in the pastoral regions of Inner Mongolia. We analyse how it impacts the health of the grasslands and the productivity of the animals. For the purpose of assessing the status of meadows, the Standardized Contrast Vegetation File is used. We used data from 52 counties collected over a 15-year period, 10 years before and 5 years after the implementation of SISGC, to conduct our empirical research. Simultaneous equation models are used to examine the connection between livestock productivity and grassland health. The results indicate that the SISGC has greatly improved the condition of the grasslands. The SISGC has reduced the overall animal population, especially the sheep population, but has had no impact on the vast monster population. On the other hand, as a result of rising meat prices, the population of sheep, large animals, and all livestock has increased. The SISGC’s ability to maintain control over the expanding cattle population in pastoral areas shows that it has been successful in halting the destruction of the grasslands. Additional strategy pushes are required to take into account how to prevent field degradation in light of the rising demand for meat among the Chinese populace and to handle the elevated level of destitution among pastoralists, in addition to limiting the population of domesticated animals.