Could this move herald an end to China’s use of threatened wildlife in traditional medicines?

The Government of China has made a commitment (Chinese) to supporting the development of substitutes for endangered wildlife used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

The announcement by the National Medical Products Administration of China (NMPA) is an encouraging step towards ending the use of threatened wildlife in TCM and represents tangible progress following a proposal submitted at China’s annual plenary sessions of the National People’s Congress in March earlier this year.

EIA welcomes the NMPA’s commitment as positive progress towards ending the use of threatened and endangered species in TCM, which remains a significant driver of the illegal trade of wildlife derivatives including pangolin scales, leopard bones, rhino horns and bear bile.

EIA Wildlife Campaigner Erin Chong said: “Collaboration with TCM researchers and practitioners is a vital step towards securing this shared goal. Voices within the TCM practitioner community continue to advocate for sustainable and non-wildlife TCM.

“With this new announcement, it is our hope that the NMPA will continue to prioritise the approval and use of substitutes, phasing out the use of threatened and endangered species.”

The use of many threatened and endangered species in TCM remains legal in China under the country’s Wildlife Protection Law, which permits their captive breeding and use for scientific research and other (unspecified) specific circumstances.

In 2023, EIA research in our report Investing in Extinction identified at least 88 TCM products available online which were stated to contain leopard, pangolin, tiger or rhino, manufactured by Chinese companies and displaying NMPA permit numbers.

The new announcement has prioritised substitutes for some wildlife derivatives, namely pangolin scales, saiga horn, ox bezoar, bear bile and caterpillar fungus, not specifying other key species used in TCM such as leopards and musk deer.

Chong added: “Clarifying the full list of species that will be subject to this research would go a long way to offering assurances that real change is on the horizon.

“The NMPA notice alludes to the use of captive-bred specimens, although no species are mentioned. The ambiguity over the status of use of captive-bred tiger bone and rhino horn therefore continues.”

EIA continues to advocate for the Government of China to amend its legislation to remove threatened and endangered species from current exemptions of utilisation and to remove all references to such wildlife in the official Pharmacopeia of TCM ingredients.