The price of traditional Chinese medicine has risen sharply. Experts predict that the traditional Chinese medicine industry may usher in a new rise in the next three years.

According to China Rural Voice "three Rural China" report, with the increasing demand for medical products and services, traditional Chinese medicine is becoming more and more popular. Especially after Chinese scientist Tu Youyou won the Nobel Prize, the fever of traditional Chinese medicine appeared one after another at the Rio Olympic Games and the G20 Hangzhou Summit.

However, in addition to the popularity of traditional Chinese medicine, there is also the market price of medicinal materials. Since the beginning of this year, the price of traditional Chinese medicine in China has generally risen, and some have even doubled.

Gansu farmer Gong Wenping has been growing Codonopsis pilosula for more than a decade, and there have been a lot of ups and downs in the prices of Codonopsis pilosula, but this is the first time he has seen such a rise like this year:

Gong Wenping: the price of Codonopsis pilosula must have gone up this year, by 100%. The smallest one last year was more than 20 yuan per jin, and this year it is more than 50 yuan per jin. This year, production itself has been reduced, and the reduction in production has been severe, with a reduction of almost 30 to 40 percent.

Codonopsis pilosula is not the only kind of Chinese herbal medicine that has increased in price. Yang Wunu has planted Radix Isatidis in Shenmu County, Shaanxi Province for six years. This year, she has planted more than 2000 mu of Radix Isatidis, which is currently being loaded. Yang Wunu's Banlangen is mainly sold to Anhui, Hebei and other places. Because the output value and output of Radix Isatidis are high, coupled with the good market this year, Yang's confidence in planting has doubled:

Yang Wunu: at this time last year, the market price was as high as 8.50 yuan / jin, and the lowest was about 7 yuan / jin. Today, the best market price is about 11 yuan / jin, the medium-sized one is 9 yuan / jin, and the usual one is 10 yuan / jin. The market situation this year is much better than last year, with an average increase of 2 yuan to 3 yuan per jin. This year's output value is higher than that of last year. Tomorrow will certainly be better, because the technology is becoming more and more secure.

Zhang Bin, an analyst at Zhuochuang Information, said that the price of traditional Chinese medicine has been in the doldrums since 2013. In 2016, affected by multiple factors, the price of traditional Chinese medicine rose as a whole. According to its statistics, in the past month, including Platycodon grandiflorum, Sichuan Dome, Atractylodes macrocephala and other varieties of traditional Chinese medicine increased greatly.

Zhang Bin: 2016 can be said to be a year of overall recovery in the traditional Chinese medicine industry, especially since the second half of the year, the prices of most varieties have risen steadily. Among them, Codonopsis pilosula, Ligusticum chuanxiong, Coptis chinensis, Atractylodes macrocephala and Platycodon grandiflorum increased significantly. Of the 57 varieties monitored by Zhuochuang, 34 were higher than the same period last year, accounting for 59.6%. 18 were stable, accounting for 31.5%, and only 5 fell in price, accounting for 8.8%. Take Platycodon grandiflorum as an example, the price of peeled two-year-old Platycodon grandiflorum increased by 10-15 yuan / kg compared with the same period last year, an increase of 58.9%. The price of Atractylodes macrocephala Koidz also increased by about 10 yuan / kg, and the year-on-year increase was as high as 70%.

Zhang Bin said that the price increase of traditional Chinese medicine this year is mainly affected by three factors:

Zhang Bin: on the one hand, affected by the weather, the yield of some varieties should be reduced by drought and flood, such as Codonopsis pilosula and Angelica dahurica, by 40-50%. On the other hand, since 2013, the traditional Chinese medicine industry has entered a downturn, with low prices of most varieties, weak demand, serious oversupply, serious losses by drug farmers and dealers, and declining enthusiasm for planting and management. Such as Platycodon grandiflorum, Scutellaria baicalensis, Anemarrhena anemarrhena, Atractylodes macrocephala and other real estate varieties decreased significantly. Things are vaguely expensive, and prices naturally rise. Third, the general environment of the pharmaceutical market has improved this year, with the financial strength of businessmen, optimistic about the future, active investment operation, and a strong willingness to raise prices.

Wang Guoqiang, vice minister of the State Health and Family Planning Commission and director of the State Administration of traditional Chinese Medicine, said that the rise in the price of traditional Chinese medicine is an objective fact, but how do we look at this matter correctly and objectively? I think we should look at it from two aspects:

Wang Guoqiang: first, the price of Chinese medicinal materials has been on the low side in the past. Although Chinese medicinal materials are agricultural products, we can see that the prices of other agricultural products are rising, and the prices of Chinese medicinal materials have never been adjusted. This situation directly affects the enthusiasm of drug farmers to grow medicinal materials. Second, if there is no reasonable price formation mechanism, the quality of traditional Chinese medicine planting will be affected. Therefore, it is necessary to adjust the price of traditional Chinese medicine properly, and it is also an important aspect of the sustainable development of traditional Chinese medicine.

Zhang Bin, an analyst at Zhuochuang Information, predicts that the traditional Chinese medicine industry may usher in a new rising period in the next 2-3 years:

Zhang Bin: to sum up, whether it is real estate varieties or wild scarce resources, under the background of high standards and strict requirements of national policies, quality priority, and the changing environment of overall supply and demand, in the short term, after the opening of the market next year, pharmaceutical companies and businesses enter the spring stock period, and the prices of medicinal materials may still be raised. Long-term analysis shows that after a 3-year trough, the traditional Chinese medicine industry may usher in a new upward period in the next 2-3 years.

In this regard, Wang Guoqiang, vice minister of the State Health and Family Planning Commission and director of the State Administration of traditional Chinese Medicine, also said: on the one hand, it is necessary to vigorously promote the standardized cultivation and development of traditional Chinese medicine, so that traditional Chinese medicine can form a scale on the basis of improving quality and ensure supply. On the other hand, a reasonable price adjustment mechanism should be established.

For the vast number of traditional Chinese medicine growers, Zhuochuang Information analyst Zhang Bin also gave his own advice:

Zhang Bin: for farmers to improve their planting techniques and improve the output and quality of traditional Chinese medicine per unit area. Don't expand the seed blindly to avoid oversupply. Pay close attention to the market dynamics, make rational judgment, operate cautiously, and avoid the risk of speculation caused by following the trend. Broaden the sales channels and make use of the new "Internet +" model, combined with the traditional pricing of goods.