"Good medicine, medicine is good." This is not just a simple slogan. It means quality and safety for domestic Chinese herbal medicine companies.

Source puzzle

In the opinion of many people in the industry, despite years of hard work, the problems of Chinese herbal medicines have not been fundamentally improved, and they have even become more and more serious in certain varieties.

“The efficacy of proprietary Chinese medicines is directly determined by Chinese herbal medicines. The quality of Chinese herbal medicines is determined by factors such as land, rain, and temperature. If everyone is worried that tomatoes have been hit with hormones and leeks have used pesticides, why would they feel the same? There is no reason why Chinese herbal medicines growing in the soil on the earth are safe and sound?” said a reporter from a Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine who was unwilling to give his name on an interview in an interview with the “First Financial Daily” yesterday.

In the autumn, from the north to the south, the country has land cultivation, and nearly a thousand kinds of Chinese herbal medicines, which are grown in the fields in the fields, have entered their respective mature harvest periods.

Harvested from the field, rough-processed, handed over to the trader who received the drug or sent to the nearby trading market, and after another round of selection and packing, transported to a pharmaceutical factory thousands of kilometers away, a kind of herbal medicine really realized its medicinal value. It has just opened in life.

“Chinese herbal medicines are inspired by the necessary processing techniques to excite and preserve the maximum efficacy, and then they are made into different products and dosage forms according to different uses. But in the final analysis, the two most critical steps are: first, medicinal herbs, and second, concocting. The congenital medicine factor accounts for a larger component," said the above professor.

This is also the key to many old experts in Chinese medicine.

According to data from the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Medicines and Health Products, more than 60% of Chinese medicine products that have been rejected by importing countries in China have been punished with “green barriers.” China’s exports to the United States, Japan, the European Union, South Korea, and Canada have been blocked by a total of 2,298 batches of food. Among them, there were 85 batches of plant-derived Chinese herbal medicines, 79 batches of special dietary obstruction, and 24 batches of animal-original Chinese herbal medicines. The above three categories accounted for 8.1% of the total obstructed foods.

The main reasons for the obstruction were microbial contamination, heavy metals, residues of pesticides/veterinary drugs, pollution of chemical substances, and unqualified packaging, among which heavy metals and pesticide residue limits were particularly severe.

In fact, strict control over heavy metals and pesticide residues has become a top priority. Compared with developed countries, China's control of heavy metals and pesticide residues in the cultivation of Chinese herbal medicines is relatively late, which makes it impossible for export companies to fundamentally monitor the heavy metal and pesticide residues in Chinese medicines, and many companies have not yet mastered overseas studies on botanical drug heavy metals. , pesticide residues standard data, resulting in repeated setbacks in exports.

According to public information, from April 2006, Japan decided to continue to implement the five pesticide residue standards for ginseng and other five Chinese herbal medicines. At the same time, it plans to re-set pesticide residue standards for 15 kinds of Chinese herbal medicines such as licorice and astragalus; Heavy metal and pesticide residue permitting standards and detection methods - In the context of the continuous increase of import standards of major exporters of Chinese herbal medicines, the safety issue of Chinese herbal medicines cultivated by farmers in farming methods has once again been a wake-up call.

According to an investigation report on the pesticide contamination of Chinese herbal medicines recently published by an NGO organization, pesticide residue samples were collected from 23 kinds of 65 samples of medicinal materials sold in 9 chain pharmacies in 9 cities (including Hong Kong), including Beijing Tongrentang Commercial. The results of 65 kinds of Chinese medicine products purchased by pharmacies such as Tongrentang Pharmacy, Yunnan Baiyao Pharmacy Co., Ltd., and Hunan Jiuzhitang Retail Chain Co., Ltd. from the Investment Group Co., Ltd. showed that 48 pesticides were detected in a total of 48 samples, and 6 out of 26 samples were detected. Residues of pesticides have been banned, including highly toxic pesticides such as phorate, carbofuran, and aldicarb, accounting for 40% of the total sample size.

As China has a very limited number of regulations for the maximum amount of pesticide residues in Chinese herbal medicines, it has been found that the residue of pesticides in some samples exceeds tens or even hundreds of times in reference to the European Union's Maximum Residue Standards for Pesticides. Among them, Tongqitang (Beijing) has detected a pesticide in the panax notoginseng. Residue of thiophanate-methyl was 51.6 mg/kg, exceeding 500 times the standard.

“Chinese herbal medicines are the same as other crops under the chemical and agricultural model. The prevention and control of pests and diseases depend heavily on the use of chemical pesticides, which is the main reason for pesticide residues in Chinese herbal medicines,” said the report.

"Authentic herbs" also strokes

"The problem of Chinese herbal medicines is not one or two days. In order to prevent pests and diseases and increase production, the use of pesticides in large quantities will lead to land pesticides and heavy metal residues, decreased drug power, and increased toxicity. Some prescriptions that have been used for several hundred years will not receive efficacy. , to a great extent, there is something wrong with the source of medicinal materials,” said the above professor.

The professor introduced to reporters that what is more serious is not just general Chinese herbal medicines. In recent years, even if it is the “Tao Di medicinal material” that represents the highest quality in Chinese medicine, the range of unstable quality and decreased drug power is also increasing.” Clinically reputable old famous artists often encounter curative effects that are not as good as before, or even 'not ready to eat', he said.

The traditional Chinese medicine culture has always emphasized the "Taochi herbs", that is, the traditional Chinese herbal medicines have certain germplasm, production areas or specific production techniques and processing methods of Chinese herbal medicines, Hangzhou Bai Ju, Sichuan Fritillaria, yam and other names The name of the drug name "Authentic Chinese Herbal Medicine" has become a well-known synonym for reliable quality, stable performance, and definite curative effect.

“As with agricultural crops, the cultivation of Chinese herbal medicines is also a very fragile industry. It is not only directly affected by the weather, but also depends on local water and land resources,” said the aforementioned professor. “The area of ​​land has been reduced. Wastewater from industrialization has flowed into land and air pollution has polluted the air. Waste slag is buried directly in the soil and destroys the foundation of Chinese herbal medicines. How can the medicinal herbs grown out of them be the same as before?”

The main reasons for the obstruction were microbial contamination, heavy metals, residues of pesticides/veterinary drugs, pollution of chemical substances, and unqualified packaging, among which heavy metals and pesticide residue limits were particularly severe.

In fact, strict control over heavy metals and pesticide residues has become a top priority. Compared with developed countries, China's control of heavy metals and pesticide residues in the cultivation of Chinese herbal medicines is relatively late, which makes it impossible for export companies to fundamentally monitor the heavy metal and pesticide residues in Chinese medicines, and many companies have not yet mastered overseas studies on botanical drug heavy metals. , pesticide residues standard data, resulting in repeated setbacks in exports.

According to public information, from April 2006, Japan decided to continue to implement the five pesticide residue standards for ginseng and other five Chinese herbal medicines. At the same time, it plans to re-set pesticide residue standards for 15 kinds of Chinese herbal medicines such as licorice and astragalus; Heavy metal and pesticide residue permitting standards and detection methods - In the context of the continuous increase of import standards of major exporters of Chinese herbal medicines, the safety issue of Chinese herbal medicines cultivated by farmers in farming methods has once again been a wake-up call.

According to an investigation report on the pesticide contamination of Chinese herbal medicines recently published by an NGO organization, pesticide residue samples were collected from 23 kinds of 65 samples of medicinal materials sold in 9 chain pharmacies in 9 cities (including Hong Kong), including Beijing Tongrentang Commercial. The results of 65 kinds of Chinese medicine products purchased by pharmacies such as Tongrentang Pharmacy, Yunnan Baiyao Pharmacy Co., Ltd., and Hunan Jiuzhitang Retail Chain Co., Ltd. from the Investment Group Co., Ltd. showed that 48 pesticides were detected in a total of 48 samples, and 6 out of 26 samples were detected. Residues of pesticides have been banned, including highly toxic pesticides such as phorate, carbofuran, and aldicarb, accounting for 40% of the total sample size.

As China has a very limited number of regulations for the maximum amount of pesticide residues in Chinese herbal medicines, it has been found that the residue of pesticides in some samples exceeds tens or even hundreds of times in reference to the European Union's Maximum Residue Standards for Pesticides. Among them, Tongqitang (Beijing) has detected a pesticide in the panax notoginseng. Residue of thiophanate-methyl was 51.6 mg/kg, exceeding 500 times the standard.

“Chinese herbal medicines are the same as other crops under the chemical and agricultural model. The prevention and control of pests and diseases depend heavily on the use of chemical pesticides, which is the main reason for pesticide residues in Chinese herbal medicines,” said the report.

Standard technology is behind

In fact, due to the growing problem of pesticides and heavy metals in Chinese herbal medicines, China has implemented the “GAP” (Chinese Traditional Medicine Production Quality Management Practice) (GAP) in 2002 by drawing on experience from the international plantation industry. Through the certification of some Chinese herbal medicine production bases, strict control over the use of pesticides has been implemented. To ensure the cultivation and supply of high-quality medicinal herbs.

"The original intention is good, but it is far from the 'zero farmers' that the country hopes to achieve. The state has not fully reflected the encouragement and support of high-quality varieties in its policies," said a person in charge of a GAP planting center in north China.

The planting center is the second batch of domestic companies to participate in the GAP planting base. “The idea was to think that this is the direction of future development. To join early can both ensure production and increase quality, and supply it to other suppliers. Two birds with one stone, and at the time the policy promise stated that it would consider giving certain support to the pricing of products,” said the person in charge.

However, the subsequent situation did not exactly meet his expectations. In the second half of 2006, the continuous drought caused a large area of ​​diseases and insect pests. “The use of pesticides can not be controlled at all, and insects can crawl everywhere,” he said.

The part of the crop that was contracted to the local farmers was also because the income was not good, and the output was very severe. Everyone slowly lost their original enthusiasm.

In the description of GAP by the State Food and Drug Administration, the regulation is based on the “safe, effective, stable, and controllable” international standard as the terminal standard, and stipulates the quality requirements for cultivation, harvesting, packaging, and transportation of Chinese medicine. . Strict standards were established for pesticide residues and heavy metal content. Strict restrictions were placed on the cultivation scale and growth period of different Chinese herbal medicines. It was also stipulated that the origin of Chinese herbal medicines should meet the national ecological standards. For example, “irrigation water of medicinal materials should be consistent with farmland irrigation. Water quality standards etc.

The purpose of the GAP certification of traditional Chinese medicine is to use standardized management and quality monitoring methods to protect wild resources and ecological environment, adhere to the "maximum sustained yield," and achieve the sustainable use of Chinese herbal medicine resources.

"This policy has been implemented for 11 years now. The effect is yes, but in the past it was mainly encouragement. Under the current circumstances, it is necessary to enforce it." The aforementioned expert said.

According to Ren Dequan, former deputy director of the State Food and Drug Administration and chairman of the Jointly-established Sharing Alliance for Chinese Medicinal Materials, the country is now implementing GAP for Chinese medicine companies to encourage them, and is not mandatory. In the future, it is necessary to “support high-quality enterprises and realize high quality and high prices”. For companies that do not comply with the GAP norm, even if certification is passed, they must be resolutely eliminated.

In an interview with the media, Ren Dequan revealed that the next step is to ban the production and circulation of pesticides, and the supervisory authorities should take effective responsibility to block the possibility of their entry into Chinese medicine production from the source; encourage Chinese companies to connect with farmers, according to the The requirements of the order, from the source to control the safety of materials; encourage large companies to establish traditional Chinese medicine production base, or co-construction and sharing, the formation of one or two supply bases, in order to stabilize the supply.

The import and export data of the Chinese Medicine and Health Products Import and Export Chamber of Commerce in the first half of the year showed that in the first half of the year, the export of Chinese medicines rose rapidly, with an export value of 1.491 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 22.49% year-on-year. The amount is derived from the substantial increase in exports of extracts and Chinese herbal medicines.

However, it is not difficult to find out why the continuous rise in domestic prices of Chinese herbal medicines in the past two years is mainly due to the fact that international customers, especially Japan, South Korea and ASEAN merchants, have reduced their purchases during the past year, resulting in a decrease in inventories in the first half of this year and increased purchases. At the same time it stimulated further price increases. However, pesticide residues and heavy metals remain the biggest obstacles to the export and internationalization of Chinese medicine.

The data show that in the multi-residue analysis technology of pesticides, the US FDA's multi-residue detection method can detect more than 360 kinds of pesticides, the German method can detect 325 kinds of pesticides, and Canada's multi-residue detection method can detect 251 kinds of pesticides.

In contrast, although some toxic pesticides such as 666, DDT, and some organophosphorus pesticides can be detected in Chinese medicine, some pesticides that may be used in the cultivation of traditional Chinese medicine are still available. Little involved. As far as the types of Chinese herbs involved are concerned, there are less than 100 kinds of Chinese medicinal materials that are related to harmful residues in China.