Jinan has been accelerating the development of new productive forces this year, focusing on digitization, greenization, and health care. On April 22nd, the “China, an Opportunity” International Media Tour of Shandong Province was held, and a South Korean media delegation visited Huaxi Biology and Shandong Hongjitang Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. to explore Jinan's innovative path.

Biomedicine and healthcare represent one of Jinan's four leading industries. As the aging population grows and healthcare demands evolve, the industry faces new challenges. At Huaxi Biology, the media learned about the trillion-dollar industry behind hyaluronic acid, a result of developing new productive forces.

Established in 2000, Huaxi Biology is a global leader in biotechnology and biological materials and a renowned developer, producer, and seller of hyaluronic acid. The media first visited the World Hyaluronic Acid Museum, the world's first museum dedicated to hyaluronic acid, showcasing the industry's development path and achievements. The museum and the functional skincare production demonstration workshop form the Huaxi Biology Industrial Tourism Demonstration Workshop.

The media observed the production process of hyaluronic acid and experienced its applications in cosmetics, skincare, health products, and medicine. They also sampled hyaluronic acid water, experiencing its magical properties. "Hyaluronic acid water helps protect the gastrointestinal mucosa," explained a staff member.

 In 2012, Huaxi Biology achieved large-scale production of oligomeric hyaluronic acid using enzymatic cutting for the first time globally. Based on this technology, the company now offers over 200 specifications of hyaluronic acid raw materials, with the ability to produce the largest (over 4000 kDa) and smallest (800 Da) molecular weight hyaluronic acid worldwide. Huaxi Biology's enzymatic cutting technology has obtained invention patents in China, the United States, the European Union, Japan, South Korea, and elsewhere, winning the "21st China Patent Gold Award" in 2019.

Jinan aims to become a hub for hyaluronic acid in China and a global center for hyaluronic acid industry development, strengthening its industrial ecosystem. It leverages leading companies like Huaxi Biology to implement projects for stronger, more resilient, and more extensive industry chains, attracting hyaluronic acid enterprises and fostering an industry ecosystem characterized by leading companies, collaborative support, and cluster development.

 The media then visited the Hongjitang Museum located in the Linuo Smart Park, delving into the inheritance and development of Hongjitang’s traditional Chinese medicine culture. The museum houses various historical artifacts, including the 1915 Panama Gold Medal and Hongjitang's gelatin products collected by celebrities from various sectors over different periods, captivating the attention of visiting media.

 Founded in 1907, Hongjitang boasts 151 certificates and ten exclusive product specifications, covering Chinese patent medicines, Chinese herbal pieces, bulk drugs, gelatinous Chinese medicines, formula particles, and functional foods.

 In the exhibition hall, the media sampled snacks like gelatin cakes, gelatin jujubes, and gelatin hawthorns, experiencing traditional Chinese medicine culture up close and learning about Chinese medicine products. They particularly appreciated products like Angong Niuhuang Wan and Niuhuang Qingxin Wan.

 As a participant, inheritor, and promoter of the traditional Chinese medicine industry, Hongjitang shoulders the historic mission of improving, strengthening, and expanding the Chinese medicine industry. In recent years, Hongjitang has focused on traditional Chinese medicine, combining big data, blockchain, the Internet of Things, and other new-generation information technologies with traditional Chinese medicine processes to create a "smart national medicine" complex integrating smart production, research and development innovation, marketing, e-commerce, brand empowerment, and cultural wellness, leading industry innovation through digital empowerment.

New productive forces represent an advanced form of production characterized by high technology, efficiency, and quality, aligning with the principles of latest development. With a focus on breakthrough projects, Hongjitang is striving to develop new productive forces, creating highlights like the Laiwu Intelligent Manufacturing Project, Smart Chinese Medicine Pharmacies, Lubo Pharmaceutical Project, Gelatin Intelligent Manufacturing Project, and Granule Intelligent Manufacturing Project. By combining lean production, digital twinning, the Internet of Things, supply chain, big data, and artificial intelligence, Hongjitang aims to digitize the entire production process of Chinese medicine, achieving high-tech, efficient, and high-quality production throughout, creating innovative, effective, safe, and trustworthy products.

 "Today, I visited Hongjitang Pharmaceutical Company, which has a history of over a century, and I am truly impressed by the exceptional quality of its products. I believe the craftsmanship and technology of the technicians here represent the future of Chinese pharmaceutical companies," remarked Kim Man-soo, President of the International Association of News Media Exchange.

 In the future, Jinan will focus on five major areas: biomedicine, traditional Chinese medicine, medical devices, medical aesthetics and anti-aging, and special medical foods, promoting technological innovation in future health industries, life information, and precision medicine.

 (Li Xiaotong; Gong Lili; Hua Shan; Yuan Yuhua; Liu Xiaohan; Lou Xinyu; Hou Yawen; Liang Ruixin; Xu Jiayi; Li Jiayin; Liu Lu; Yang Yang; Chong Yaqi; Yuan Yaning)