Known for its iron and steel industries, Benxi, a city in northeast China's Liaoning Province, plans to cultivate its biopharmaceutical industry to make it a growth engine for the future, according to Mayor Gang Rui.

Development of new industries including biopharmaceuticals will be a turning point in Benxi's economic development, said Gang, also a deputy of the 11th National People's Congress.

City policies support development and modernization of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and as a result it has made notable progress, Gang said. It has also drawn the attention of the provincial government, which decided to lend its full support and make it a pillar industry of the province.

To realize renewal of the TCM industry, the city has improved the asset and technical structure of its pharmaceutical sector. Its technology and equipment have now reached international standards after the adoption of modern manufacturing practices.

The production capacity of TCM tablets has been raised by 50 percent, granular formulations by 23 percent, oral liquids by 16.7 percent and capsules by 67.5 percent.

Benxi's TCM industry became one of the best performers in Liaoning last year with sales of 1.51 billion yuan that resulted in a profit of 738 million yuan.

Benxi has rich forest resources, with a forest coverage of 73.8 percent, the top in Liaoning Province. Its rich forest reserves, about 26 percent of the provincial total, are conducive to traditional herbal medicine.

Another effort to fuel the TCM sector is to make the Benxi economic and technological development zone a center for TCM plantations, pharmacology, research and services.

A State-level TCM research center and a Liaoning provincial TCM industrial park have been established in the zone, followed by 16 pharmaceutical companies that have moved in due to preferential government policies.

The city has also expanded its funding for new infrastructure over the past years to lay a solid foundation for the further development of the TCM sector.

Efforts included requisition of 290,000 sq m of land, construction of railway and river bridges, construction of Binhe West Road and Xianghuai Road and upgrades to the power grid.

According to Gang, expansion of TCM plantations has been fostering strong support for the city's pharmaceutical industry. Total land under cultivation reached 47,000 hectares by the end of 2006.

Research and development is another advantage to pharmaceutical companies. They have expanded their cooperation with TCM research institutions and schools since 2002, with at least one new TCM research center opening every year.

Those now in operation include a State TCM Engineering Technology Research Center, the technology center of Liaoning Good-Nurse Pharmaceutical Co, the technology center of Liaoning Dongfangren Pharmaceutical Co and the technology center of Liaoning Fuyuan Pharmaceutical Co.

Combining research and manufacturing, the centers and their partners in Beijing and Shenyang are jointly working on solutions to high blood pressure and other blood disorders, diabetes and pharmaceutical generics to fight fatigue.

As people pay increasing attention to their health, companies in the city have developed a range of healthcare products.

To date, 17 enterprises have registered 102 types of such products. More enterprises are expected to begin production of healthcare products using locally produced ingredients such as ginseng, acanthopanax, shizandra berry and hairy deerhorn.

(China Daily March 20, 2008)