Seventeen local drug manufacturers and some 100 pharmacies will be forced to stop operations by the end of this year because they have failed to meet national requirements on drug manufacturing and sales, the Shanghai Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday.

Officials from the administration also announced the first ever regulations on the production and sale of gaofang, cream-like medicine tonics made from the extracts of various Chinese herbs that are very popular in the winter.

By the end of last month, 125 of the city's 166 drug manufacturers had passed inspections by the bureau and another 24 are undergoing or preparing for inspections and are very likely to pass the examination within this year, officials said.

"The unqualified 17 manufacturers only account for 1 percent of local drug production, so closing them won't influence normal manufacturing and patients' purchase of medicines," said Tan Wukang, director of the Shanghai FDA's drug safety monitoring department.

Also by the end of October, 128 drug wholesalers, 29 chain pharmacies and 1,722 drug stores passed examinations that looked at drug quality management, staff qualifications, equipment, and operation and storage areas.

With the approach of winter, gaofang is getting more and more popular in the city, with people's increasing awareness of personal health.

Officials said sales of gaofang rise by 30 to 40 percent every year. About 100,000 prescriptions for gaofang were written in the city last year, with sales of the cream topping 100 million yuan (US$12 million).

One dosage of gaofang, which can last for an entire winter, costs 800 yuan to 1,000 yuan in the city.

"Since there are special regulations on gaofang production and sales, we have set up rules on gaofang processing and service to ensure medicine quality and people's health," said Xu Jinbai, director of Shanghai Traditional Chinese Medicine Association. "We also provided training and examination on workers making gaofang, as only those with our certificates are allowed to be involved in the medicine's production."

"Many of my colleagues visited TCM experts for gaofang, which can nurture vitality and enhance the overall constitution," said Lily Zhu, a 28-year-old trade company clerk.

(Shanghai Daily November 25, 2004)