Aerial photo shows the standardized planting base of Chinese medicinal herbs in Kezhai town, Longxi county, Gansu province. (PHOTO: VCG)

By CHEN Chunyou

Natural advantages can be transformed into the momentum for development if well exploited, something that rings true for Longxi county.

Longxi, in northwest China's Gansu province, has a long history of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). It has a mild and semi-arid monsoon climate and a diverse ecological environment, which match the biological characteristics of medicinal herbs. Benefiting from the innate natural gift, medicinal materials production has formed obvious advantages whether in varieties, planting area or yield. Now it has become an important planting base of TCM.

According to the report to the 20th CPC National Congress, China will promote the preservation and innovative development of TCM. This will become the blueprint for the TCM industry in the years to come.

Longxi High-tech Zone (LHZ) was established in 2021, based on its longstanding industrial foundation. This September, LHZ was designated as an industrial base for developing TCM by the Torch High Technology Industry Development Center under the Ministry of Science and Technology, marking the birth of the third industrial base featuring TCM industry in Gansu province.

The cultivation of herbs used in TCM contributes much to Longxi's economy. Astragalus and Codonopsis, among other medicinal plants, flourish here and have been processed over the years.

Longxi has built up the comprehensive industrial chain of the TCM sector, producing decoction pieces, herbal extracts and patent medicines. Now, there are about 299 TCM enterprises in LHZ.

In 2021, Longxi's TCM industry contributed 16.7 percent to the county's GDP, 21.9 percent to local fiscal revenue, and about 40 percent to farmers' per capita disposable income, becoming the county's primary industry.

Meanwhile, LHZ has introduced measures to make the TCM industry prosper, including initiating an industrial innovation alliance, establishing a TCM testing alliance and creating incubation platforms.

The construction of a logistics port infrastructure project with an investment of 2.43 billion RMB kicked off in the county this September. It will improve traffic efficiency, and promote high-quality development of the TCM industry after becoming operational.

Longxi gives priority to cultivating talented individuals. Now, a large number of experts in standardized TCM herbs-planting, storage, processing, marketing, R&D, and enterprise operation and management, have been attracted to the area.

"Through training, I learned the techniques of mulch outcrop cultivation, soil treatment, and ditching. I have not only mastered a lot of new knowledge, but also confirmed the idea of planting Chinese medicinal plants in the future," said Quan Shulin, a farmer of the county.

Of note is that digital technology is also used in the TCM industry, with a digital trading center in operation to promote the online sales of local medicine businesses.

This July, the development plan for the biomedicine industry in the 14th Five-year Plan period was released by Gansu provincial government, which proposed to build Gansu into a leading national hub for TCM industrial innovation and form a distinctive biomedical industry cluster by 2025. This will create additional opportunities for Longxi to achieve more breakthroughs.