Mr Lee Yi Shyan at the Official Opening of the Traditional Medicine Expo 2010, 15 Oct 2010

Speech by Mr Lee Yi Shyan Minister of State for Trade & Industry and Manpower at the Official Opening of the Traditional Medicine Expo 2010Friday, 15 October 2010, 10.00am

Mr David Tang

Chairman, Singapore TCM Organizations Committee

Mr Lee Tiong Sa

Chairman, Organizing Committee, Traditional Medicine Expo 2010

Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen

I am pleased to join you for the opening of the second Traditional Medicine Expo.

Growing demand for locally made traditional medicine products

Globally, the demand for traditional medicine(TM) is rising. More people are willing to consider alternative approaches to good health. In fact, the global market for traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is expected to exceed US$107 billion by 2011.

Here in Singapore, traditional medicine has also grown in popularity. In fact, Singapore’s imports of Traditional Medicine including Complementary Medicine and Health Supplements increased by 45 per cent in the last two years. It went up from $1.1billion in 2007 to $1.6billion last year.

Obviously, Singapore as a Trade Hub for TM has much room to grow. Singapore’s strong brand and reputation for maintaining quality standards, have resulted in an increase in international demand for our TM products. Local TM products can be found in markets as far as Africa, America, Europe and the Middle East.

I am pleased to note that beyond trading, Singapore’s TM manufacturing and processing capability has also grown over the years. Today, as much as 35% of the over 8,000 types of Chinese proprietary medicines approved by the Health Science Authority for sale in Singapore are manufactured locally.

We now have a total of 40 Chinese Proprietary Medicine (CPM) manufacturers in Singapore. Of which, 13 have obtained the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certification. These capabilities will help local manufacturers to have greater control over the qualities of the TM they produce, thus ensuring better product consistency and efficacies.

Encouraging innovation in the traditional medicine sector

For the TM sector to grow further, maintaining or upgrading the quality of internal manufacturing practices is critical but not enough. Companies must be prepared to invest resources in developing new products, as well as product applications such as how TM can be consumed as part of modern lifestyle.

To support the growth of the TM and food industry, Spring Singapore and Singapore Polytechnic have jointly established the Food Innovation Resource Centre (or FIRC) to help companies develop new and innovative products.

One company that has benefited from FIRC’s help is Robust & Life Compact Pte Ltd, a company that manufactures and distributes mainly health products. It engaged FIRC to develop a cordyceps ginseng tea base for its range of antioxidant superoxide dismutase (SOD) tea series. They have since developed an optimal base formulation with a Fruit of the Forest flavor to suit consumers’ taste. This new product will be launched at the end of this year and will be available at major retail stores such as Watson's and Guardian.

Last year, SPRING also launched the Innovation Voucher Scheme, which helps SMEs gain expert help to implement their innovative ideas. A total of 516 companies are benefitting from 19 knowledge institutions such as FIRC. I encourage companies to take advantage of this scheme to innovate their businesses.

User friendly packaging will aid consumers in purchasing decision. Packaging is therefore very important. Consumer must be given good product information before a purchase decision is made.

Consider Wen Ken Group. They will be launching an innovative new packaging, with a non-spill, flip-top cap for their 琵琶膏 (Pi Pa Gao). This packaging will ensure that the medicated syrup does not stick to the cap – one reason why some customers shun the frequent consumption of pi pa gao. Consumers will find it more convenient to carry it around and take the Pi Pa Gao on the go.

Another innovation breakthrough for some TCM companies is the production of halal certified products.

Targeted at the second largest ethnic group in Singapore, local TCM companies such as Science Arts has successfully obtained halal certification for their products from the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore. These companies have not only widened their customer base, but also given the Malay community the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of TCM.

I would like to urge our enterprises to also think of building up their business capabilities. TM is both a science and an art. It is a science because we need research of its active ingredients, processing methods and manufacturability. It is also an art because the way it is prepared, consumed and applied, has to be integrated into modern lifestyles.

SPRING Singapore has various schemes and initiatives to support the growth of TM industry in terms of technology development, branding, quality standards, as well as in facilitating market access and collaborations.

Strong growth potential in the traditional medicine services industry

In tandem with the growing consumption of local TCM products, we are also seeing a higher demand for TCM services at hospitals and TCM clinics. Mainstream hospitals such as Raffles Hospital, Changi General Hospital and Singapore General Hospital are also setting up TCM clinics to meet the needs of consumers.

To meet the demand for professionally educated TCM practitioners, local educational institutions are also stepping up efforts by offering more courses. Local institutions such as the TCM College Singapore and the Singapore College of Traditional Chinese Medicine have also seen an increase in enrollment over the years.

Conclusion

In closing, I would like to commend the Singapore TCM Organizations Committee for organizing the second Traditional Medicine Expo. The Expo has gathered TM experts, hospital practitioners, traders and manufacturers at one large platform to discuss the ways going forward for the industry. It is my hope that in the near future, we will have an even larger, integrated and vibrant TM cluster in Singapore.

Thank you.