Business Club January 28th

Following the falsification of various valuable medicinal materials, industrial upgrading began to break the deadlock.

Recently, it was reported that Jilin Province's “Ginseng Management Measures” is expected to be formally introduced in the first quarter of this year. It is reported that this method will specifically regulate the cultivation, processing and circulation of ginseng. Shortly before this, Qinghai Province, as the largest producer of Cordyceps sinensis in China, standardized the production of Cordyceps sinensis Chinese medicine products and introduced the “Standard for Processing Chinese Herbal Cordyceps Slices in Qinghai Province”. For the first time, this specification provides detailed regulations for the production of Cordyceps sinensis from 11 sources, including sources of herbs, processing methods, character identification, and content determination. With the increasingly prestigious situation of the survival of valuable medicinal materials, a regulatory campaign has already begun.

Conflict between supply and demand highlighted

During the interview, the interviewed experts and companies invariably expressed their concern about the market chaos of the current valuable Chinese herbal medicines. With the boom in the Chinese herbal medicine market and the continuous rise in prices of medicinal materials, the sustainable development of valuable medicinal herbs is also becoming increasingly acute.

The author understands that in recent years, due to the impact of the new medical reforms and the state's supportive policies on the Chinese medicine industry, the Chinese medicine industry has emerged from a bright market. According to statistics, during the first 11 months of 2010, the revenue from traditional Chinese medicines has increased by 40% year-on-year, and that of proprietary Chinese medicines has increased by 26% year-on-year. The prosperity of Chinese medicine has driven the rapid development of medicinal materials, and the application of medicinal herbs in beverages and foods has become increasingly widespread. The international demand for Chinese herbal medicines has grown rapidly, and demand for valuable medicinal herbs has soared. However, the output of some valuable medicinal materials has shrunk sharply. Under the atmosphere of “upswing”, ginseng, Cordyceps, and other medicinal materials used in the manufacture of false clamps to contain the throat of its industrial development.

Zhou Lushan, the general manager of the Chinese herbal medicine company Cai Zhilin, the largest distributor of Chinese herbal medicines in the country, said in an interview with the author: “Although the quality upgrade of rare medicinal herbs is the trend of the times, it is the contradiction between the supply and demand.” Rare resources The imbalance between demand and capacity is currently the biggest contradiction."

Not long ago, the Chinese University of Hong Kong conducted a random inspection of 15 Cordyceps sinensis in the Hong Kong market. The results of random inspection showed that 40% of Cordyceps sinensis samples were suspected of fraud. Not only that, but now the use of mottled potatoes instead of Gastrodia, radishes with colored radishes as ginseng, etc. is even more varied, leaving consumers worried.

In view of the endless occurrence of fraudulent incidents of rare medicinal herbs in various places in recent years, the president of the Chinese Medicine Association, Fang Shuting, believes that the reason is very simple: the scarcity of rare medicinal herbs and the conflict between supply and demand cause high prices. On the one hand, valuable medicinal materials are depleted due to the frequent destruction of resources and the environment; on the other hand, the use of fake medicines has eliminated the enthusiasm of downstream pharmaceutical companies. "From the perspective of the Association, we will do our best to participate in counterfeiting and vigorously participate in brand building and promotion." Fang Shuting told the author.

In fact, as China's current research on the development of rare medicinal herbs resources and planting specifications is not enough, coupled with blind over-excavation, some valuable medicinal resources have been destroyed and face depletion, and the quality of wild medicinal herbs continues to decline. For example, there are many species of wild animals and plants in Tibetan areas such as Cordyceps sinensis, Tibetan capillaris, singer's scent, and pheasant, which will be degraded and even extinct. "Last year, Tibet formally issued the "Opinions on Further Supporting and Promoting the Development of Tibetan Medicine", one of the purposes is to save valuable Chinese herbal medicine resources. Not only that, but also the self-upgrade of other rare medicinal materials is equally urgent," analysts said.

Focus on sustainable development

In fact, the reality of the supply and demand faced by valuable medicinal herbs is only a symptom of the problem. How to make the sustainable development of rare Chinese medicinal materials is a deep-rooted topic that is now before the industry interface.

The author has learned that in recent years, the construction of a medicinal material standard system has been continuously improved. Last year, the National Standards Committee initiated the project of "Certificate of Cordyceps sinensis Identification and Classification," and "Technical Specification for Deer Antler Processing," and relevant provinces also intensively introduced standardized medicinal materials management policies. For example, the "Jilin Ginseng Management Regulations" is about to close, which is another important measure after the "Wild Mountain Quotation Quality Standard" standard and 11 varieties of fresh ginseng identification. Some people think that for the sustainable development of valuable medicinal herbs, the first standard should be set.

Liu Baodong, director of the Correctional Medicine Planning Department, told the author that due to the low yield of original valuable medicinal materials and the lack of uniform standards, Jilin plans to refer to the Korean ginseng’s industrial development model and uniform standards to improve Jilin ginseng’s brand competitiveness and technological competitiveness. . “Beginning last August, we are preparing for amendments to the standard, trying to deepen the processing of ginseng products and implement the store model, and strive to become the standard of the ginseng industry.” Liu Baodong believes that in the current industry norms are still stretched, creating standards can only have vitality.

In fact, the long-cherished wish for the awarding of rare medicinal herbs is not just in Jilin. Qinghai Province clearly stipulates that Cordyceps sinensis preparations must be standardized in the industry. A company official in Qinghai said that the code has a positive effect on improving the utilization of rare medicinal materials.

With the increasing demand, wild resources are decreasing, how can Chinese herbal medicines get out of trouble and achieve sustainable development? Zhou Lushan believes that “in fact, the country has set a lot of standards in different links in the TCM industry chain. The problem is that most of them are recommended standards. If companies do not implement them, their products will be more competitive due to cost advantages. In this vicious circle, The industrial chain is limited in its ability to operate. Therefore, the implementation of the Chinese herbal medicines standard must be true.”

Fang Shuting said that the country is developing a "three-dimensional" plan, building a dynamic monitoring and early warning network for traditional Chinese medicine resources and a shortage of wild medicinal herb breeding bases to fully promote the standardization and scale of Chinese herbal medicines. “At the same time, the state should also give more prominence to the role of economic regulation. For example, the adoption of a taxation mechanism to regulate and increase the enthusiasm of farmers to plant crops, resulting in a substantial reduction in production of individual varieties due to irresistible causes, implementation of reasonable planting subsidies, and reduction of the circulation of traditional Chinese medicine The relevant expenses shall be implemented to the operators to implement the credit rating system to help or eliminate the inferiority."

"I think the country should establish a monopoly system for valuable Chinese medicinal materials as soon as possible," says Liu Baodong.

It is worth noting that on the 8th, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine combined with Sichuan Provincial Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine and other units took the lead in launching the first "Tracing System of Chinese Medicine" in the country, which caused new thinking in the industry about the specifications of the famous medicinal materials. The above experts believe that if the technology is successfully piloted, the valuable medicines will be affixed with two-dimensional bar code electronic tags, and various parameters can be displayed through the sensors. This will also be a new exploration to promote the sustainable development of your family medicine.