Ecology and Animal Ethics

VALUES WHICH ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO US

Chinese herbal medicine is criticized time and time again for using herbal substances which are unecological and not ethical towards animals. This criticism is partly justified. Tiger bone, rhinoceros horn and bear gall are examples of products that have a significance in Chinese medicine and were also used in the past. They are still being traded on the black market today.

Chinese medicine is a holistic medical system and perceives humans as part of nature. Accurate observations of nature allow conclusions to be drawn about processes in the body. Man, as part of the cosmos, is a microcosm. Only in a healthy and intact environment can man feel comfortable and stay healthy.

OUR ECOLOGICAL AND ETHICAL PRINCIPLES

For LIAN, this holistic understanding of man and nature, of illness and health, also means compliance with ecological and ethical principles. We strive to put environmental safety, sustainability and ethics at the top of the list, and choose our product range accordingly, even if that means that we can not offer a medically important product temporarily or permanently. The medical importance of a product must not lead to the exploitation of nature and unethical behavior. In any case, however, we strive to provide as complete a substitute as possible for missing medicines and advise our customers how the products can be substituted.

WE STRICTLY ADHERE TO CITES PROVISIONS

CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Over 160 countries have joined and support the agreement. CITES aims to ensure that trade in plants and animals does not endanger their survival. Medicinal products of plant or animal origin, whose "origins" are listed as endangered in the CITES appendices, may not be traded or are subject to restrictions. For species of Appendices II and III, an official CITES certificate is required which certifies that the plant or animal originates from cultivation or breeding and not from the wild. Although the acquisition of CITES certificates in China is partly bureaucratic and laborious, we adhere to this. Only in this way can the convention be work for protected species. Moreover, importing without a certification is illegal. Arguments like: "Turtle shells are simply waste products of soup production" are insufficient for us and ignore the principle that the protection of the nature and environmental requires efforts from everyone. This also applies to the conservation of endangered animal and plant species. We do not support ethically questionable animal husbandry practices. For this reason we do not carry, for example, lu rong (Cervi Cornu Pantotrichum) in our range. Lu rong is a deer horn which is still supplied with blood, and it is brutally sawn off a living deer. The wounds often become infected. Lu jiao, the discarded horn, must suffice as a substitute, although its potency as a yang tonic is inferior. A stronger effect can not justify the violation of ethical principles.

SUBSTANCES FROM ENDANGERED ANIMAL OR PLANT SPECIES

The following substances commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine are obtained from animal or plant species that are specified by CITES as endangered. LIAN distributes these substances only if an official CITES certificate is available:

  • shi hu (Dendrobii Caulis)
  • tian ma (Gastrodiae Rhizoma)
  • mu xiang (Aucklandiae Radix)
  • rou cong rong (Cistanches Herba)
  • bai ji (Bletillae Rhizoma)
  • gou ji (Cibotii Rhizoma)
  • gui ban (Chrysemys Plastrum)

SUBSTANCES WHICH ARE STRICTLY FORBIDDEN TO TRADE ACCORDING TO THE CITES AGREEMENT :

  • xi jiao (Rhinocerotis Cornu)
  • hu gu (Os Tigris)
  • ling yang jiao (Cornu Antelopis)

Analytics

ANALYTICS AS A BASIS FOR PROPER QUALITY

All products already undergo multiple tests in the country of origin. In the course of inspecting incoming goods, the herbs are checked again. In the foreground are:

Ensuring identity
We use monographs to authenticate the identity of all batches. The current pharmacopoeias from Europe and the People's Republic of China are used as the basis.

Testing for contaminants
We test for heavy metals (cadmium, mercury, lead, arsenic), microbiological impurities, increased pesticides, aflatoxins and ochratoxins.

Determination of possible toxin levels
For certain substances, we test for possible toxin levels. For example, aristolochic acid or pyrrolizidine alkaloids.

The active ingredient content is also determined separately. Only batches whose analysis reports correspond to our requirements are made available for sale.

Selected suppliers

SELECTED PARTNERS, SELECTED RANGE

Cooperation with our suppliers in Taiwan, China and other countries is an exciting challenge. It's important to overcome cultural differences and language barriers, to make the best possible use of the different strengths of our partners in the far east and to select the best products for therapeutic needs.

ONLY WITH INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED QUALITY STANDARDS

Adherence to PIC/EU-GMP criteria (Good Manufacturing Practice) is a basic quality requirement for our suppliers. That means:

  • Standardized workflows
  • Regular PIC/EU-GMP Audits
  • Examination of all product batches to confirm identity as well as purity according to the European Pharmacopeia (PhEur)

Abbeviations

  • PhEur = European Pharmacopeia
  • GAP = Good Agricultural Practice
  • GMP = Good Manufacturing Practice
  • PIC-GMP PIC = Pharmaceutical Inspection Convention
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