放牧是国内外普遍运用的土地管理的基本手段,至今全球陆地大约半数以上处于放牧管理之下。但受传统农耕文化的影响,我国当前对放牧管理系统存在很多误解,尤其是把草原的生态恶化、牧区贫困、文化落后都归罪于草原放牧,导致禁牧盛行。从放牧的基本内涵看,当前我国草原所面临的问题,不在放牧本身,而是对放牧认识的不足和放牧管理的缺陷,割裂了人居-草地-畜群之间的联系。从历史角度看,放牧做出了巨大贡献。而随着社会和科技的进步,放牧历经原始游牧期、放牧转型期与放牧现代化时期三阶段。西方发达国家在20世纪30年代就实现了放牧的现代化转型。畜牧业现代化的核心是以人居-草地-畜群放牧系统单元为内核的划区轮牧。划区轮牧是一种开放的农业技术体系,具有多种方式,适应于不同的农业系统,可兼顾生态与生产的需求,是草地放牧管理的重大进步。为了实现草原生态系统的生态和经济双重效应,我国畜牧业应该尽快实现草原管理和放牧的现代化转型。这是我国草地畜牧业现代化的必经之路,也是现代农业的必要内涵。

Grazing is the basic measure of land management both at home and abroad,and the grazing land covers more than a half of the global terrestrial sphere. Restrained by the traditional agrarian culture,there are many misunderstandings of grazing management system in China and it was regarded as a main cause for ecological deterioration,poverty and cultural retardation in pastoral areas so prohibition of grazing was a popular phenomenon. Actually,the current problems of China’s grassland are not originated in grazing itself,but the misconception and deficiencies in grazing management,which breaks up the relationships among human beings,grassland and livestock. Historical evidences have witnessed the great contribution made by grazing to mankind. With technological and social development grazing has experienced three stages: the primary nomadic,the transformation grazing and the modern grazing,and some Western countries have completed the modern transformation of grazing system in the 1930s. The core of modernization of grazing model is the rotational grazing based on a system unit of inhabitants,grassland and livestock. The rotational grazing is an open agricultural technical system with various sub-models to adapt to various agricultural systems and to meet the requirements of ecology and production,so it is significant progress of grassland grazing management. To secure the dual ecological and the economic benefits of grassland ecosystem,China’s animal husbandry should accelerate its modern transformation in terms of grazing and grassland management. It is the necessary approach to modernize its animal husbandry as well as to build up an essence in its modern agriculture.