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Zhejiang 'Snake Village' seeks New Year boom

In the 1980s, villagers began raising snakes for food and traditional Chinese medicine, transforming the Zhejiang village economically.

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A snake farmer checks the snakes being air-dried in Zisiqiao village, Zhejiang Province. Photo: AP

For Zisiqiao in eastern China, the arrival of the Year of the Snake on Sunday carries a special meaning, as the scaly reptile has given the tiny village its main industry and prosperity.

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In the 1980s, villagers began raising snakes for food and traditional Chinese medicine, transforming the Zhejiang village economically.

Scores of households now raise serpents, earning the settlement of more than 800 people the nickname “Snake Village” in Chinese media.

“We were poor before. We didn’t have anything else to do so we started raising snakes,” he said.

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The snake is not considered to be among the most adorable of Chinese zodiac animals – which are based on the lunar year and not the calendar month – but Gao said they provide food and medicine as well as his livelihood.

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