Rising Anhui: TCM market prosperous in Bozhou

Home to the renowned Chinese physician Hua Tuo who lived in the late Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220), Bozhou in East China's Anhui province boasts rich resources in TCM – traditional Chinese medicine, making it the country's largest TCM production area and trading hub.

The Chinese Medicinal Herbs Market in Bozhou is one of the 17 major specialized TCM markets in China. The market site covers an area of about 667,000 square meters, while the trading area over three floors covers 1.2 million sq m. There are more than 3,000 stalls in the trading hall and more than 20,000 merchants.

The total market turnover last year hit 40 billion yuan ($5.87 billion), accounting for nearly 45 percent of the total volume of transactions in similar markets nationwide.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to help its individual tenants, the market turned to online platforms, such as Douyin – known as TikTok overseas, to broaden sales channels in June, according to Su Biao, deputy operations director of the market.

The market is also a national 3A-level tourist attraction and a demonstration park for service industries in Anhui, Su added.