Abstract: The concept of "Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets" suggests that leveraging the resource endowments of origin to cultivate geographical indications of agricultural products (AGIs) can facilitate local wealth generation, serving as an effective pathway to establish a long-term mechanism for increasing farmers' income. AGIs have a defined county-level scope; however, existing research has primarily focused on analyzing the impact of inter-provincial and inter-city geographical indications on farmers' income, neglecting the extent of benefits derived from county-level geographical indications and failing to explore whether these indications can consolidate the achievements of poverty alleviation efforts. In response, this study empirically examines the impact of agricultural product geographical indications on the urban-rural income gap and its underlying mechanisms using panel data from 1,417 counties in China, employing an interactive fixed effects model. The results indicate that AGIs confer common benefits to regions, enhancing agricultural production competitiveness and economic efficiency through scaled, standardized, and localized production, thereby effectively reducing the urban-rural income gap within counties and promoting shared prosperity. Heterogeneity analysis across different types of counties reveals that the income gap reduction effect of AGIs exhibits regional disparities. Specifically, compared to counties with higher levels of economic development, these indications significantly narrow the urban-rural income gap in counties located in the western region. The reduction effect is notably greater in counties outside the Yangtze River Economic Belt than in those within it. Additionally, the linear reduction effect of AGIs on the urban-rural income gap is more pronounced in poverty-stricken counties.

Key words: rural revitalization, geographical indications of agricultural products, urban-rural income gap, agricultural competitiveness, common prosperity