Initiative helps boost traditional Chinese medicine

LANZHOU - The Belt and Road Initiative has given a new boost to traditional Chinese medicine, a 2,000-year-old national treasure.

Years ago, Niu Hongwei's TCM company in Weiyuan, a county in Northwest China's Gansu province, used to only sell herbs to domestic pharmaceutical enterprises.

Among the 23 impoverished counties in Gansu, Weiyuan is known for its medicinal materials, in particular, astragalus root and dangshen (Codonopsis pilosula).