BEIJING — China's crawfish sector posted rapid growth last year, with extended industrial chain and balanced supply and demand structure, the country's agriculture ministry said in a report.

The sector generated a total of 369 billion yuan (about $52 billion) in 2018, soaring 37.5 percent year-on-year, according to a report released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

Crawfish output in the country amounted to 1.64 million tons last year, and the total farming area reached 1.12 million hectares, the report said.

The majority of crawfish farming took place in the country's central and southern regions. Central China's Hubei province was the largest crawfish producing area, with its production accounting for half of the country's total, according to the report.

It also pointed out the fast expansion of the crawfish processing industry, as many leading e-commerce enterprises participated in crawfish logistics and catering last year, contributing to the construction of the sector's cold chain delivery and logistics system.

The sector also saw increasing sales channels both online and offline, with the number of crawfish stores surging nearly 70 percent year-on-year to more than 140,000, the report said.