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Zhoucun village, Zhuji, a county-level city under the administration of Shaoxing in East China's Zhejiang province, is one of the few places in China that still cherishes traditional Chinese brown sugar-making techniques.

The village's history of growing sugarcane at a large scale can be traced back to the reign of Emperor Shunzhi, the first emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The growing trend of planting sugarcanes in the village is partly attributed to the high demand of its neighboring city, Yiwu, which is also known as the home of brown sugar.

In the 1960s, the village began building a factory for brown sugar, which operated until the 1980s.

The modern brown sugar-making process is largely inherited from the past. Only 5 kilograms of brown sugar can be gained from 50 kilograms of sugarcane through refining.

Brown sugar was historically regarded as indispensible to Zhuji people when visiting relatives and friends during traditional festivals.

However, traditional techniques of handmaking brown sugar have been fading as industrialization picks up pace. Aware of this, the village began to attach more importance to preserving the intangible cultural heritage.

Zhoucun is now making use of the traditional techniques and its historical culture to bring prosperity to the village.

Workers brew brown sugar in a traditional way at a workshop in Zhoucun village, Zhuji, a county-level city under the administration of Shaoxing in East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/Zhejiang Daily]

A farmer cuts down sugarcane in Zhoucun village. [Photo/Zhejiang Daily]