A new growth mode for Pu’er: Developing economy based on nature

Yunnan — As a fresh college graduate, Wu Chaomei’s daily job seems to be “slower” than most young people in China. She needs to wait for as long as three to five years to harvest the medicinal herbs her company cultivates.

She works for the Songmao Pharmaceutical Group in southwest China’s Pu’er, a city at the border with Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. In a densely forested area, the company has a large base where all kinds of traditionally used herbs are planted.

The practice of the company is called “underwood planting”, a trendy way of growing medicinal herbs in non-timber forests.

In Pu’er, which is known for its high-quality tea and coffee products, the emerging industry is bringing dynamics to the once-underdeveloped city, at a time when the country is trying to revitalize the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

Established in 2009, Songmao’s herbal medicines have seen a growing market share. Zhou Zhengfeng, general manager of the company, said that their products are also gaining an increasing popularity for good quality.

“We barely use any pesticides or additives during the cultivation,” said Zhou, stressing that the company emphasizes environmental protection. He added that the farming is largely relied on human labor instead of mechanization.

“It would be more profitable to grow these herbs by using new technologies, we still try to minimize human intervention to ensure the high quality of the medicines we produce,” Zhou explained.

The cultivation of Luxiancao, a medicinal herb used to treat liver diseases, is an example. The plant parasitizes legumes, and therefore, the company has planted around 33 hectares of legumes in the forest to protect their growth.

The mild climate and natural resources of the forest also provides an ideal environment for the growth of different kinds of medicinal herbs. In 2020, the place was selected as a pilot production base to demonstrate how to balance economic development and ecological protection.

Dendrobes, a kind of medicinal herb, are grown in Songmao company’s cultivation base. /Gao Yifan

Situated in the country’s border region, Pu’er has mainly relied on agriculture and tourism for economic development. In 2022, its GDP per capita was about 45,000 yuan (around $6,300), as compared to the national level at 85,700 yuan.

Though its economic growth is relatively slow, the city boasts abundant natural resources, especially forests. Official data shows that the city’s forest coverage rate is as high as about 75 percent. And such resources are creating more development opportunities, which can be illustrated by experience of companies like Songmao.

Chinese President Xi Jinping once pointed out, “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assts”. Over the past decade, China has sticked to “green development” path, and companies in line with this development philosophy has won much support from local governments. For example, Songmao rented its farmland from the local government at a favorable price of 833 yuan (around $115) per hectare, according to Zhou. 

In the first half of this year, the city’s biopharmaceutical industry reached an output of 40,300 tons, an increase of 11,600 tons compared with the previous year, with a total output value of 4.375 billion yuan (around $0.61 billion), as the Pu’er Daily reported. 

Now, 19 biopharmaceutical companies are operating in the region. The city will continue to support underwood medicinal herb cultivation and try to make biopharmaceutical industry another calling card of the city.

China has shown great determination to revitalize and develop TCM. In 2017, a special law on it was enacted. During the COVID-19 pandemic, TCM therapies have also been considered to play an important role in combating the virus. Songmao is also confident about its future development. With the economic recovery in China, Zhou said the company is expecting a 40 percent growth in sales in each province this year.

Zhou added that they will also make the faming base a popular tourist attraction.

“For example, tourists can pick the beautiful dendrobe flowers and taste our special cuisines using special herbs as ingredients,” he said.

Songmao’s forest. /Gao Yifan