Exhibitor profile
JF-NATURAL, just for natural
—— An interview with the Hongjian Yu， general manager of JF-NATURAL
Editor’s words：
The trend of returning to nature leads to the rapid growth of plant extract industry, and the trend has come to China. There are already over 800 plant extract exporters in China, of which about 200 have R&D capabilities, but not many stand out. JF-NATURAL is one of the star enterprises. The company extracts Oligomeric Proantho Cyanidins (OPC) from grape seeds. OPC is a free radical scavenger. It has antimicrobial, anti- lipid peroxidation, anti-cancer, and anti- platelet agglutination functions, and prevents cardiac disease. It is widely used in food, drug, and cosmetics. It can enhance product quality and adds to product value. The price of OPC peaks at RMB 3,500/kilogram.
JF-NATURAL has the biggest OPC site in China. The company has been a leading player in plant extract technology of natural medicine and plant-based health care industry. What lies behind the success of JF-NATURAL? eChinaChem, Inc. journalist interviewed Hongjian Yu, founder of JF-NATURAL, and tried to understand its situation and future.
eChinaChem journalist (Journalist): You have become a leading producer of grape seed extracts in China since foundation in 1999. You have won awards, applied for patents, and undertaken national projects. How do you maintain your competitive edges?
Hongjian Yu: Backed by our strength of commercialization, postal doctoral center, and collaboration with research institutes, JF-NATURAL further develops its technology. Keeping our strength in grade seed extraction, JF-NATURAL develops resveratrol based on grapes. It has also developed OPC-B2, B3 that have shown strength in the treatment of diabetes complication. It not only is the No. 1 in China market, but helps industry upgrade.
Journalist: What are your other products besides grape seed extract? How about their applications? Why do you develop such products? What are characteristics of these products?
Hongjian Yu: Based on our grape seed extraction technology, we have developed several raw materials for healthcare products. They are:
Resveratrol series: Resveratrol is a natural antitoxin. We’ve developed two specifications for this product: with high content (99%, 98%), and with low content of archin. We improved its aqueous dispersion due to its water insolubility. We have successfully extracted Resveratrol from grapes.
Carotenol and mutatoxanthin series: Carotenol and mutatoxanthin are the only two carotenoids in human eyes. They are natural materials that can prevent and treat ophthalmic diseases. We have developed Carotenol 90% and mutatoxanthin 40% products. As Carotenol and mutatoxanthin are unstable and decompose easily, we have developed micro-ball products and facilitate tablet compressing.
Rose extract: The product is based on imported rose. Its content of rose polyphenol is as high as 70%, and that of OPC B2 is 10%. It can be used in healthcare and cosmetic products.
Compound extracts: Our polyfruitnol® compounds OPCs derived from 6 plants. Various vitamins and flavoring agents are added to the product. Consumers may put the product in cold water and drink it. It has good effect and taste, and human bodies absorb it quickly. Consumers may take 3 grams at one time every day, and the product will provide adequate antioxidant protection. Our sugareduce® compounds the extracts of several natural plants. It decreases blood glucose as shown in pharmacological test. It can be used in the prevention and treatment of diabetes.
Journalist: What is your major market? Who are your customers? Besides products, what services do you offer?
Hongjian Yu: The extracts of grape seeds and apples from JF-NATURAL have established its presence in international market, including Europe, North America, Japan, and North Korea. JF-NATURAL has established long-term cooperation with leading international producers of health food. It also supplies to leading international food and food ingredient producers. JF-NATURAL offers not only products, but contract manufacture, formula design, and product processing services. It provides technology consulting services and brochures, and solutions for customers.
Journalist: How about your cooperation with research institutes? What are your projects involved, and how about the future?
Hongjian Yu: We’ve established long-term cooperation with China Pharmaceutical University ,ShenYang Pharmaceutical University, Shandong University, East China University of Science and Technology, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Tianjin University of Science and Technology. Our cooperation covers R&D, clinical studies, and personnel training. We are the commercialization site for natural plants of ShenYang Pharmaceutical University and Tianjin University of Science and Technology. The sites are conducting research on projects such as natural isoflavones . We’ve made good progress in this project and participated in the development of national standards.
Journalist: Now global industries are cutting emission and energy consumption due to climate change . How about your efforts in this field?
Hongjian Yu: As a hi-tech company committed to healthcare industry, we value the recycling of materials. Take the grape seed extract as an example, we source grape seeds from wine producers, and only use pure water and edible alcohol in the extraction. After extraction, the seeds can be used to produce grape seed oil or feed.
Journalist: How do you view China’s plant extract market? What are your future plans, and how will you tackle difficulties and challenges?
Hongjian Yu: The outlook of China’s plant extract industry is very good, despite the lack of industry standard and light disorder caused by it. JF-NATURAL will focus on its strength, prioritize quality and leading technology, and be committed to serving natural products.
JF-NATURAL is a good case in plant extracts industry because it explores values from grape seeds that wine producers regard as useless. The company is not the first one in the industry, but it catches market needs, bases its R&D on it, and commercializes its lab results quickly. JF-NATURAL does not want to stop although it has already achieved a lot. It not only values its own growth, but the healthy growth of the industry.
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Hongjian Yu, R Ph, is currently general manager and chief engineer of JF-Natural.
In 1999, Hongjian Yu founded JF-Natural that focuses on the R&D and production of natural products including plant extracts. He developed and commercialized the leading process of extracting Oligomeric Proantho Cyanidins (OPC) from grape seeds. Now the OPC from JF-Natural enjoys good share in international market, and the company has become the largest producer of OPC in China. He led a team that develops and produces Resveratrol, red cabbage extract, blueberry extract, apple polyphenol, and lutein. He also led the team that successfully extracts resveratrol from rhizoma polygoni cuspidati，puerarin from lobed kudzuvine root，OPC from pine bark, chrysanthemum flavone from chrysanthemum，and polyphenol from Echinacea. Its processes of extracting polyphenol and phlorizin from apples have been patented in China. Now the company has over 30 plant extract products. It has developed large scale chromatographic column that ensures commercialization of plant extraction.
Hongjian Yu worked in Tianjin Traditional Chinese Medicine Company during the period from 1989 to 1999. He participated in the development of cassia angustifolia teabag, led a team that studied processes and facilities for the infiltration of traditional Chinese herbal medicine, and the other team that examines the product quality of 100 traditional Chinese herbal medicine companies across China. The team also advised on the development of policies towards traditional Chinese medicine. He also led a team that developed quality standards of toxical traditional Chinese medicine. He accumulated rich experience in the R&D of plant extracts during the research and quality standard development of decoction-free traditional Chinese medicine and extracts of traditional Chinese medicine.
Hongjian Yu published extensively on the quality assessment of grape seed extracts and Radix Paeoniae Alba, infiltration processes of traditional Chinese medicine, RP-HPLC measurement of vitexin content in hawkthorn, vacuum film coating, and the application of anthocyanin in health food. He also participated in the editing of books on APIs of herbs, the extraction of APIs from herbs, and grape polyphenol.
Hongjian Yu graduated from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Department of China Pharmaceutical University. He is also a guest professor at Beijing Forestry University, director of R&D site for health care materials, Science Development Center of China Health Care Association, and a senior expert at Tianjin Economic and Technological Development Area (TEDA).
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