Agricultural trade, which involves the exchange of virtual water and land resources, can effectively regulate the allocation of resources among countries while enhancing the well-being of resource-rich and resource-poor nations. China’s animal products trade market concentration is greater, and the livestock industry consumes more water than other agricultural sectors. In order to alleviate the pressure on China’s domestic water and land resources and to ensure that Chinese residents have access to animal products, this article examines the trade situation and drivers of virtual water and land resources related to Chinese animal products trade. This study used the heat equivalent method to measure the virtual water and land flows of the import and export of beef, pork, and mutton from 1992 to 2018, which is followed by the gravity model to investigate the factors impacting China’s flow of virtual land and water related to livestock products trade. We found that the economic development and the agricultural resources of exporters, as well as China’s agricultural employment rates, have a stable beneficial impact on China’s livestock imports. The population of importing nations, China’s cultivated land area, and the livestock production index of importers and exporters have a positive impact on the export of livestock products from China. Our results remain robust following a series of additional tests.

This study initially employs the Integrated Evaluation Method to assess financial inclusion and the sustainable development index from 2005 to 2021. Subsequently, the study uses fsQCA to examine how a combination of variables, including financial inclusion, technological innovation, foreign direct investment, household consumption levels, industrial structure, and urbanization, affects sustainable development at various levels. The findings indicate that financial inclusion, technological innovation, foreign investment, consumption, and urbanization are core conditions for High-SDI. In addition, the causal configurations associated with Low-SDI indicate that the absence of financial inclusion, technical innovation, and foreign investment are correlated with reduced sustainable development. Based on the results of panel data fsQCA, the sample is divided into three regions eastern, central, and western for empirical analysis. The empirical findings are notably consistent with the fsQCA configuration outcomes. This study provides policymakers with theoretical references on how to improve the level of sustainability in various regions of China.