Press Release

International meeting on Hong Kong's Chinese herb standards convened

6 Dec 2010

The Fifth Meeting of the International Advisory Board (IAB) on Hong Kong Chinese Materia Medica Standards (HKCMMS) commenced in Hong Kong today (December 6) to continue to examine standards for Chinese herbs.

The four-day meeting, chaired by the Director of Health, Dr P Y Lam, is attended by over 40 overseas, Mainland and local experts in Chinese herbal medicine, as well as researchers from six local participating universities, i.e., The Chinese University of Hong Kong, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Baptist University, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and The University of Hong Kong.

HKCMMS provides recommendations regarding the safety and quality of Chinese herbal medicines commonly used in Hong Kong with the primary aim of safeguarding public health.

IAB was established in early 2002 to give advice on the principles, methodologies and analytical methods for the development of HKCMMS. It comprised renowned experts from the Mainland, Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States in addition to local experts.

IAB is also responsible for the selection of institutions to take up the required research work, including laboratory analysis; determined the target herbs; and helped to decide the content of the HKCMM Standards. It usually meets at least once every two years to examine and endorse the research results.

The Meeting will review and endorse the research work of the current phase of HKCMMS project and formulate a strategic plan for the next phase. The number of commonly used herbs to be covered by the project will increase from the present 60 to more than 200.

Information on the HKCMMS' publications can be obtained from the Department of Health website under the section of “Chinese Medicine” at www.dh.gov.hk/english/main/main_cm/main_cm.html .