Future

        Chinese medicine has been practiced for a long time, but with the progress of technology and growing popularity of Western medicine, Chinese medicine has met with many challenges and been forced to make transitions and changes. During our interviews with store owners, all of them expressed their solicitude on the fact that few young people seek help from Chinese medicine, mostly due to the proliferation of Western-style clinics, health insurance coverage, and more pronounced symptom relief. These young people often overlook the importance Chinese medicine places on gradual, inner healing, that such gentler processes are less likely to harm the body, and that even thought healing processes take longer and are less significant, they often bring prolonged or permanent relief. To meet with these changes in popular opinion, Taipei Chinese Herbal Apothecary Association has teamed up with Chinese medicine apothecary owners to jointly promote knowledge of the benefits of Chinese medicine. In addition to widely publicizing the value of Chinese medicine, they also plan to instill innovative elements into the age-old industry and so make it more acceptable to the younger generation and general public.

Health regimens and medicinal cuisine

        With the modern awareness of health in mind, Dihua Street Chinese Medicine apothecaries have begun to delve into the aspect of marketing “healing foods,” of overturning the general conception that Chinese medicine can only be used for wounds and illnesses, and marketing certain herbs as appropriate in regular cooking to add nutritional value and flavor. Stores have begun to sell a variety of pre-packaged cooking packs that customers can choose according to need, thereby providing them with a quick and easy way to engage in a “healing diet.”

Pre-packaged cooking packs

Medicinal cuisine dishes

Biotechnology facilitates medicine intake

          In former days, people took home packages of prescribed herbs and cooked them down into liquid medicine, but the process is both complicated and time-consuming, and in this modern age of convenience and speed became an unrealistic practice. Due to changes in the style and pace of living, people began to wish for a more convenient way to use Chinese medicine

Vacuum-packed liquid medicine

           The advancement of technology allowed for so called “scientific Chinese medicine” and “vacuum-packed liquid medicine” to be readily available. Scientific medicine refers to medicine extracts in the form of tablets or capsules that make consumption more much convenient. Many apothecaries hope that with further advancement of biotechnology, scientific Chinese medicinal extracts may become more widely used, thus saving unnecessary cooking time and inducing the busy people of today to purchase Chinese medicine. On the other hand, some apothecaries have come up with “pre-packaged liquid medicine,” another convenient option for the customer. The medicine is packed in a vacuum bag, and need only be reheated before intake. By making medicine intake more convenient, the industry hopes to establish a multidimensional market and in due course elevate their sales.

Scientific Chinese medicine

     Bright and modern Chinese herbal medicine store  

Enhance interior décor to retain traditional value and assert innovation

In recent years, apothecaries have been undergoing renovations in an effort to change from traditionally dimly lighted store fronts to bright, modern interior décor and thereby attract more customers. The younger generation no longer shies away from Chinese medicine apothecaries and is instead willing to try them out, and meanwhile stores continue to upgrade both the quality of their products and of service in order to win customers’ trust and patronage. This kind of thorough transformation of the industry helps to retain the traditional cultural values of Chinese medicine while also giving it a fresh new outlook.

Aside from these spontaneous acts of renovation and innovation, the Taipei Chinese Herbal Apothecary Association also aims to promote knowledge of Chinese medicine by issuing magazine articles and advertising pamphlets. The joint efforts of the administration and private business owners will create a powerful alliance for the Chinese medicine sector to win back customer preference and enable the unique industry of Chinese medicine to flourish and endure.