On May 14-16, under the guidance of the Major Special Projects Department of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Science and Education Department of the National Health Commission, the Science and Technology Department of the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Major Special Tasks Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Medicine and Health Engineering Division of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, "the Fourth Forum of Future Chinese Medicine — Strategy Seminar on High-Tech Promoting High-Quality Development of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)" was held in Chengdu, Sichuan Province.

With the theme of "High-Tech Promoting High-Quality Development of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)", this forum analyzed the current status and future trends of the development of the TCM industry, and focused on topics including the connotation, elements and bottlenecks of high-quality TCM, the value and demand assessment of high-quality TCM, and the demand of high-quality development of the TCM industry for technical equipment, with the following five consensuses achieved:

First, TCM requires high-quality development. The high-quality development of TCM is not only necessary for maintaining the sustainable and healthy development of the TCM industry, but also an important guarantee for better satisfying the people's growing demands for TCM services and medication safety.

Second, the goal of high-quality development of TCM is to ensure the safety, effectiveness, and quality of TCM at a higher level. The high quality of TCM includes the excellent quality of medicinal herbs, the standardization and control of the production process, the balance and stability of quality, and the clear benefits and convenience of clinical applications.

Third, the multi-field and multi-technology cross-border integration is an inevitable path and a technical guarantee for achieving high-quality development of TCM. Through cross-border integration, we will make breakthroughs in new technologies, develop new equipment, accelerate the realization of self-reliance and self-improvement with scientific and technological innovation, promote the high-quality development of the TCM industry, foster new business forms, and reshape the new industrial pattern.

Fourth, we should promote the development of high-quality TCM in the whole industry chain. We should establish a standardized system and testing platform for the high-quality development of TCM, form alliances for scientific and technological innovation and industrial development, promote the integration of government, industry, university, research and use, and establish a data system for the whole industrial chain.

Fifth, the high-quality development of TCM requires strong policy support. We should increase policy support for the application of advanced technologies in TCM manufacturing and encourage clinical use, and strengthen the construction of talent teams to further optimize the security system for the high-quality development of TCM.

Experts in the field of TCM and information attended this conference and had in-depth exchanges across disciplines and fields. Four academicians including Zhang Boli, Wu Hequan, Chen Kaixian and Wang Guangji delivered keynote speeches online and offline respectively. Experts in the field of TCM represented by Hu Jingqing, Chen Shilin, Wang Yitao, Zhao Junning, Cheng Yiyu, Yang Ming, and Peng Cheng, and experts in the field of Information represented by Ye Tianchun, You Xiaohu, Du Xiaoli, Zhan Banghua, and Li Xinxin, made keynote speeches and seminars.

Zhang Boli, Academician of CAE and Deputy Chief Engineer of the National Key Science and Technology Project for Innovation of New Medicine, said that the General Office of the State Council issued the Notice on the Plan of Developing Healthcare Service of Traditional Chinese Medicine (2015-2020), which showed that the TCM health industry would be worth RMB 1 trillion.

"The new large-scale TCM industry has significant comprehensive benefits, so it is necessary to optimize the industrial and agricultural industrial structure and increase urban employment to promote local employment of farmers, poverty alleviation and prosperity, ecological environmental protection, the reform of the medical and health system, and improve the quality of people's lives," said Zhang Boli.

In Zhang Boli's view, the bottlenecks in the development of TCM are as follows: first, the overall service capacity of TCM is relatively weak; second, the research capabilities and level of TCM need to be improved; third, the TCM evaluation system needs to be established urgently; fourth, the quality and sustainable development of TCM resources need to be improved; fifth, there is a relative shortage of TCM backbone talents.

Meanwhile, the Inaugural Meeting of the Alliance for High-quality Development of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle Genuine Medicinal Materials was held and the special fund for the genuine medicinal herbs industry was released.

It is reported that the conference was co-sponsored by the FuTURE Mobile Communication Forum and China Traditional Chinese Medicine Science and Technology Development Center, and co-organized by the Sichuan Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu University of TCM, and University of Electronic Science and Technology of China. It received guidance and support from more than 10 government departments at all levels, including the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China, National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China, National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Engineering, Sichuan Provincial Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Science&Technology Department of Sichuan Province, Sichuan Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Sichuan Medical Products Administration, Sichuan Provincial Economic and Information Department, Health Commission of Sichuan Province, Chongqing Science and Technology Bureau, and Chongqing Municipal Health Commission.

More than 200 people from the field of TCM, circulation of TCM and intelligent manufacturing equipment across China, and more than 100 institutions and enterprises from Chengdu and Chongqing attended the conference.