TCM herbs need strict oversight regimen

"The government should demand that local authorities strictly implement guidelines on medical herb cultivation while making national plans for the development of the herb-farming industry," Xu said.

"The training for professionals involved in medicinal herbs and publicity about agricultural chemicals should be stepped up."

China consumed more than 1.2 million metric tons of medicinal herbs in 2012, according to Xu.

Compared with food safety, a national priority, the supervision and regulation of medicinal safety are far from adequate, said Tang Nong, another NPC deputy and president of the Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine.

"We can't afford to stain the reputation of our traditional medicine, which has been accumulated over millennia, because of unscrupulous practices and lax regulation," he said.

"In addition to planting, the government should also better supervise the processing since unchecked processing also pollutes the medicine and compromises the efficacy."

Some pharmaceutical companies use sulfur to treat herbs to prolong their longevity, Tang noted, adding that such practices pose grave threat to consumers.

Guangxi has 4,632 medicinal herbs, ranking second in China next to Sichuan province, he said.

"We have discussed the safety and quality issues with our Western counterparts, but the platform for such exchanges needs to be expanded," the professor said, suggesting that communications should be stepped up to facilitate international cooperation.