HÀ NỘI –
Việt Nam’s pharmaceutical industry has consumed about 60,000 tonnes of
traditional or herbal medicinal materials, of which between 80 per cent and 85
per cent was imported from China.
Participants
heard this at a workshop on Sustainable Development of Medicinal Materials in
Việt Nam jointly organised by the Nhân Dân (People) Newspaper and the Ministry
of Health today in Hà Nội.
The
ministry’s Traditional Medicines Department Director Phạm Vũ Khánh said that
every week some 300 tonnes to 400 tonnes of traditional medicinal material was
mainly imported from China through the Chi Ma Border gate.
“The
import of materials that is not original has been a pressing problem requiring
proper measures for the future,” Khánh said.
Khánh
said that there are two kinds (forms) of Chinese materials: agricultural
products, and materials planted and harvested naturally following standard
regulations. Most of the imported materials from China were agricultural
products that were not qualified to produce traditional medicine.
“That
would impact much of the safety standards of medicinal materials and the
development of the traditional medicine industry in Việt Nam,” Khánh said.
The
director said that there are several shortcomings in the management of imported
medicinal materials, especially at border gates. Authorities could only check
quantity and weight but not quality of imported materials.
At the
event, experts said this is because of the shortage of capital investment for
developing herbal materials and building relevant regulations. The management
of traditional medicine production and trading currently has been based on
western medicine regulations. The country’s traditional medicine testing system
needs to improve its quality as well.
They said
that the country should have priority policies to support local traditional
medicine producers and minimise the import of materials that can be locally
planted in the country in an effort to promote local producers and products.
The
health ministry said that 10 local importers were granted licences to import
medicinal materials from seven exporters in China from March to date. Việt Nam
currently has 4,000 plant species that are used for traditional medicines. It
is estimated that about 5,000 tonnes of medicinal materials are planted and
harvested locally in the country annually.
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