Tongrentang

With a history of about 5,000 years, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is an everlasting cultural treasure that originated in China. And reliance upon its organic traditional Chinese medical products has made Tongrentang the most famous TCM brand name in China for more than three centuries.

 

Now a renowned Time Honoured Brand, Tongrentang and its Tongrentang Pharmacy are still based in a three-storied building built in 1702 in Qianmen by Yue Fengming. The company has applied for listing as a National Cultural Heritage.

 

Relying upon secret prescriptions handed down for generations, Yue Xianyang, the father of Yue Fengming, got a job in an imperial hospital and founded Tongrentang in the year of 1669. With the name "Tongren," he insisted that the pharmacy adhere to the Chinese tradition of providing "honest and ready to help to others." In 1702, the pharmacy was moved to Qianmen Dashilan'r by his son Yue Fengming. A workshop followed that produced TCM in pills and powders.

 

"Regardless how difficult it was to get quality medical materials and no matter how complicated it was to produce medicine, neither funds nor strenuous work was spared." With this motto of Yue Fengming's, Tongrentang soon won acclaim and was entrusted to provide TCM for the emperors and the imperial family for 188 years. It was said that Emperor Yongzheng (1723–1736) was cured using the company's medicines when he was young. In the first year he ascended the throne he offered this privilege to Tongrentang.

 

Every year, Tongrentang would send members of its experienced staff to medical markets in Hebei and Anhui to buy large amounts of quality medical materials. Later, many markets held off opening until the Tongrentang staff arrived and began the buying season. They regarded Tongrentang as an important client, who bought the largest amount of materials at the highest prices. Even today, China's largest medical market in Anhui Province maintains this tradition. Sales begin when Tongrentang comes knocking.

 

In addition to preparing quality medical materials, carefully controlled, time-consuming procedures are essential for producing Tongrentang medicines. About 100 procedures are needed for most of the medicines, including frying, steaming, baking, drying in the sun and freezing. Even more steps are required for some kinds of medicines. Some medicines must be stored dry for at least two years to achieve their ultimate medicinal value. So Tongrentang bought spacious warehouses to store these medicines.

 

One kind of medicine, called Zixuesan (for treatments of fevers and twitches), must be fried in a gold pancake using a silver pancake turner. This allows the chemical elements in gold and silver to enhance curative effects. However, during a relatively difficult period of time for the Yue family, gold pancakes were not available. So the family's members collected 100 liang (5 kilogrammes) of gold jewellery that was used in one frying.

 

For years, Tongrentang has been known for its generosity. In 1953, Tongrentang accepted joint ownership of the company by the government and Yue Family. In a book published by the government, the Yue family detailed their prescriptions and methods of production. Notices concerning 44 kinds of major medicines were handed down in their family. These prescriptions are still widely used in many medical factories across China and in some neighbouring countries.

 

But the Yue family maintained secrets concerning ten kinds of medicines. These can be recognized by lettering on boxes containing the Chinese characters 同仁 (Tongren) written on them.

 

According to Jin Yongnian, director of the Tongrentang Publicity Department, "To better control the quality of medical materials, Tongrentang has established more than 10 materials supply bases around the country. They include a ginseng base in northeastern Jilin Province, a poi base in Henan Province, a root of Co donopsis pilosula base in Shanxi Province and black-bone silky-fowl base in Beijing's Changping District. These bases are located where the medicines' production originated. Tongrentang is trying to set up bases at the production origins of all its main medical materials."

 

Other improvements are have been made in recent decades. Tongrentang is China's first enterprise to use western forms of packaging and media for administering medicines, including tablets, liquids and capsules. This has boosted Tongrentang's exports, which mainly go to Asian countries. It now has 14 branches in 9 countries and areas, including Hong Kong, Macao, London, Canada and Australia.

 

"The most troublesome difficulty we meet in foreign countries is the cultural shock. Some Chinese traditional medicines are thought of as dirty. Some doubt their curative effects. Different standards from those applied on Western medicines are strongly recommended to measure the effects of traditional Chinese medicines. However, we feel happy that many foreign individuals find that traditional Chinese medicines are like magic, especially when accompanied by Chinese traditional acupuncture and massage treatments. In Tongrentang's foreign branches, experienced doctors provide such services," said Jin.

 

By the time the Beijing Olympic Games open in 2008, a brand new hospital will have been built that will rely exclusively on the use of traditional Chinese medicines to treat patients.