Convened by Chair Professor Liang LIU, the 1st meeting of ISO/TC249/WG1 was successfully opened at Beijing on 12-13 Dec 2011. Over 30 experts from China, USA, Australia, Canada, Republic of Korea, Japan and South Africa attended this meeting. During the meeting, the first international standard draft of Chinese medicines--Ginseng Seeds and Seedling, proposed by the Institute of Chinese Materia Medica of China Academy of Chinese Medicinal Science, was thoroughly discussed and finally approved by WG1, this is a historical step in the progress of internalization and standardization of Chinese medicines. The work scope and business plan of WG1 were also approved in this meeting.
In July 2010, the Technical Committee of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TC249) was formally established in Beijing and opened its first meeting. Prof. Liang LIU, the Vice Rector and Chair Prof. Liang LIU of Macau University of Science and Technology and the Director of the State Key Laboratory of Quality Control in Chinese Medicine, was appointed as member of the technical committee of TC249.
ISO approved China government’s proposal for establishment of ISO standards in Chinese medicines, the secretariat of TC249 is set up in Shanghai. In May 2011, the second meeting of TC249 was opened in the Hague, the Netherlands and five working groups were established for development of ISO standards in Quality and Safety of Raw Materials Used in TCM (WG1), Quality and Safety of Manufactured TCM Products (WG2), Quality and Safety of Acupuncture Needles (WG3), Quality and Safety of TCM Medicinal Devices other than Acupuncture Needles (WG4), and Informatics of TCM (WG5). Prof. LIU was also appointed as the convener of WG1 to coordinate the preparation of ISO standards in Quality and Safety of Raw Materials Used in TCM, and Dr. Hua ZHOU from the State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine serves as the secretary to WG1.
Adhering the spirit of the TC249, the Working Group 1 will deepen the development in WG1, and it is the first step for the entire ISO standards in Traditional Chinese Medicine.
