Bamboo culture and industry

The British Chinese scholar Joseph Terence defines Chinese civilization as "a bamboo civilization." During the Cold War, the West referred to China's "bamboo curtain", and the Soviet Union's "iron curtain".

The evolution of Chinese civilization does have a close connection with bamboo. China has been the main living area of bamboo since ancient times. Many unearthed relics show that the bamboo played an indispensible role in agriculture, transportation, military, culture, arts and people's daily life in Chinese history.

"Without meat, meals are unsavory. Without bamboo, life is tasteless," declares Su Shi, a famous poet in the Song Dynasty (960-1279) and a passionate fan of bamboo culture.