The implementation of specialized testing for Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) materials is a core initiative to ensure medication safety, improve material quality, standardize market order, and promote the high-quality development of the TCM industry. Through systematic technical means, it rigorously controls authenticity, active ingredient content, pesticide residues, heavy metals, mycotoxins, and other safety indicators of the materials. This prevents counterfeit and substandard products from entering the market, ensuring clinical efficacy and patient safety. Specialized testing not only provides a scientific basis and an effective supplement for government supervision but also generates data that supports the standardization of material cultivation and the establishment of traceability systems, guiding the industry towards standardized management from origin to consumption.
Testing Scope
Various TCM materials and prepared slices of Chinese crude drugs, including but not limited to: Ginseng (Panax ginseng), Sanchi (Panax notoginseng), Astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus), Rhubarb (Rheum palmatum), Angelica (Angelica sinensis), Atractylodes (Atractylodes lancea), Licorice (Glycyrrhiza uralensis), Ophiopogon (Ophiopogon japonicus), Chuanxiong (Ligusticum chuanxiong), Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum sibiricum), etc.
Production Environment: Soil quality, air quality, irrigation water quality, overall manufacturing environment, etc.
Testing Items
1. Sensory and Authenticity Identification:
Macroscopic identification: Shape/size, color, texture, odor, etc.
Microscopic identification: Tissue structure, cells, cell inclusions, etc.
TLC (Thin Layer Chromatography) identification.
Chromatographic identification.
DNA Barcoding identification.
2. Physicochemical Indicators:
Protein content, Fat content, Saturated Fat, Unsaturated Fat, Trans Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Carbohydrate content, Total Sugar, Reducing Sugar, Moisture, Ash, Saponification Value, Water Insoluble Matter, Water Extract (Water-Soluble Extractives), Soluble Solids, pH Value, Particle Size, Electrical Conductivity, etc.
3. Bioactive/Efficacy Component Content:
Total Flavonoids, Puerarin, Total Saponins, Chlorogenic Acid, Glycyrrhizic Acid, Proanthocyanidins, Arbutin, Matrine, Oxymatrine, Tanshinones, Lycopene, Caffeine, Salidroside, Ginsenosides Rb1/Rb2/Rc/Rd/Re/Rf, etc.
4. Heavy Metals and Trace Elements:
Silver (Ag), Aluminum (Al), Arsenic (As), Boron (B), Barium (Ba), Beryllium (Be), Bismuth (Bi), Calcium (Ca), Cadmium (Cd), Cobalt (Co), Chromium (Cr), Copper (Cu), Iron (Fe), Potassium (K), Lithium (Li), Magnesium (Mg), Manganese (Mn), Molybdenum (Mo), Sodium (Na), Nickel (Ni), Phosphorus (P), Lead (Pb), etc.
5. Pesticide Residues:
Organochlorines, Organophosphates, Pyrethroids, Carbamates, Herbicides, etc.
6. Veterinary Drug Residues:
Antibiotics, Hormones, Antiparasitic Amines, Steroid Hormones, Beta-Agonists, Prohibited Veterinary Drugs, etc.
7. Mycotoxins (Fungal Toxins):
Deoxynivalenol (DON / Vomitoxin), Patulin, Aflatoxin M1 (AFM1), Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), Aflatoxin B2 (AFB2), Aflatoxin G1 (AFG1), Aflatoxin G2 (AFG2), Ochratoxin A (OTA), T-2 Toxin, Zearalenone (ZEN), etc.
8. Microbiological Indicators:
Total Plate Count (TPC / Aerobic Colony Count), Molds and Yeasts Count, Coliform Bacteria, Osmophilic Yeast, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, Shigella, β-hemolytic Streptococcus, Escherichia coli (E. coli), Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida albicans, etc.
9. Illegally Added Substances:
Sexual enhancement drugs (PDE-5 inhibitors), Antidiabetic agents, Sedatives & Hypnotics (Anxiolytics/Sedatives), Anti-obesity drugs (Weight loss aids), Anti-rheumatic drugs (NSAIDs/Analgesics), Anti-inflammatory & Analgesic drugs, Sex hormones, Sweeteners, Preservatives, Antioxidants, Bleaching agents, Organic acids, Colorants (Pigments/Dyes), Thickeners, Emulsifiers, etc.
10. Quality Standard Improvement & Technical Services:
Research and validation of content determination methods.
Research and validation of fingerprint profiles (chromatographic fingerprinting).
Training on testing technologies and methods.
Services related to domestic and international testing standards/methods, laboratory quality management systems, testing quality control, and TCM Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) certification, etc.
11. **Production Environment Testing:**
Soil: Soil texture identification, soil physicochemical analysis, soil profile observation and fertility evaluation.
Air: Monitoring of gaseous and vapor phase pollutants, atmospheric particulate matter and its components, precipitation monitoring, air pollution source detection.
Water (Irrigation): Testing of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD₅), Suspended Solids (SS), Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates (LAS), Chlorides, Total Chromium (Cr), etc., in agricultural irrigation water.
Hygienic Environment: Investigation and assessment of external environmental hygiene, such as distances and relationships between production bases and residential or industrial areas, etc.
Service Advantages
Equipped with advanced testing instruments and an experienced technical team with proficient mastery of TCM material testing standards and methods, ensuring precise test data and authoritative reports.
Deeply involved in the “Key Technology for Controlling Exogenous Pollutants in Dao-di Herbs (Genuine Medicinal Materials) Sanchi,” which was selected as a Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) recommended technology for 2025, demonstrating industry leadership.
Holds CMA, CNAS, and other authoritative accreditations with a rigorous testing process, ensuring accurate and efficient results.
Serves as a co-construction unit of the Provincial Sanchi Industry Technology Innovation Center and the Engineering Research Center for Key Technology Innovation and Application of Exogenous Pollutant Control in Dao-di Herbs. Participation in the “Yunnan Provincial Research on Quality and Grade Specification for Dao-di Herbs” project was selected as a major provincial science and technology special project.
