Taiwan orders Malaysia's coffee with Tongkat Ali taken off shelves

2007/1/23 The China Post staff

Taipei City's Department of Health (DOH) yesterday ordered six brands of coffee to be taken off store shelves after finding that the products contained illegal herbal extracts.

The Department of Health found that the coffee contained extracts of what is commonly known as Tongkat Ali, a plant found in Malaysia.

The department's Chiang Yu-mei said that it is not been confirmed whether the plant causes any side effects, adding that it has not yet been evaluated for safe use.

Meanwhile, distributors of the coffee have been ordered to destroy the defective beverages or return them to their manufacturers.

The distributors of the six brands of coffee have been fined NT$30,000 to NT$150,000.
Scientifically known as Eurycoma Longifolia, Tongkat Ali is believed by Malaysian locals to be an aphrodisiac.

After receiving a tip last year, officials from the Department of Health found the illegal products after looking through thirty-one markets, supermarkets, and drug stores.

The department also busted a company selling other products containing Tongkat Ali on the Internet.

Chiang said that the source, structure, and manufacturing process of Tongkat Ali is unlike any regular food and urged the public to read the labels whenever purchasing food items.
For further information on food additives, the public is encouraged to go the Department of Health's website http://www.doh.gov.tw

Comment by Dr Rajen M: After all these years, we still have not developed markers to standardise tongkat ali. There has not been a single published clinical trial for this much talked about herb. To the best of my knowledge, only process patents (which are easier to do but are easily beaten and hence have little commercial value) have been taken out thus far. The same goes for other well-known herbs like kacip fatimah. Read full article of Fixing biotech research in Malaysia

Update: Director General of Forest Research Intitute Malaysia: Tongkat Ali never found any toxin substance after 20 years research and has been used for many generation by Sin Chew Daily.

Executive Director of CNI Holdings Bhd: Hope Taiwan's directive would not affect sales volumn in Malaysia

Public listed company that sales Tongkat Ali:
CNI Holding Berhad: Coffee(MLM)
Hai-o
Cosway

Private Company:

Power Root Ali Cafe





Technorati Tag: Malaysia: Biotechnology klse Health Healthcare Tongkat Ali Bursa Malaysia

Top 10 event in Beauty Biotech industry in Year 2006 (updated)

qnDamaged in last week's earthquake off southern Taiwan on internet access plus my own tight schedule cause the delay of such post.

However, my friend said it better late than never.

Top 10 event in Beauty Biotech industry in Year 2006

1 L’Oreal acquired The Body Shop

2 "The Body Shop" franchise in Malaysia sold by Bolton for RM80m at a Management Buyout (MBO)

3 INS legal battle with Lim Chew Yin and Yigaho

4 P&G Halts SK-II Cosmetics Sales in China

5 Pig farmer in Malaysia used banned beta agonist (BA)
Pig farmer in Malaysia used banned beta agonist because the price of a legal growth-inducing substance, Ractopamine by Eli Lily's animal health unit: Elanco, costs three times higher than Beta Agonist.

6 Mystery death of Malaysia's cosmetic surgery centres operators in China

7 F&N buying Nestle milk operation


8 Scrapped listing Hospitech Resources Bhd and GP Ocean Food on Mesdaq

Hospitech Resources Bhd and GP Ocean Food Bhd. Hospitech — manufacturer of disposable hospital equipment — made history by aborting its IPO exercise the day before it was scheduled to trade on Mesdaq on April 20. The company had raised more than RM12 million from its listing to build a new factory and repay borrowings. The IPO was oversubscribed by 18.4 times. The company voluntarily withdrew its listing after the SC started probing into its financial history upon receiving information from a whistleblower. The listing proceeds were refunded to investors. The regulator unearthed falsified documents such as sales invoices and as a result, Hospitech's managing director Jimmy Goh Kai Tong was slapped with a RM500,000 fine. Barely two months later, GP Ocean, a seafood processor, withdrew its listing plans following a probe by the SC into a possible breach in securities laws, also on a whistleblower's tip.

GP Ocean's chairman and former SC chairman Datuk Ali Abdul Kadir said at the time that the company was postponing its listing in order to strengthen the company. He has since resigned from his position. The GP Ocean case also hit the limelight because it had big name investors like the Razak Foundation and Rio Capital Sdn Bhd, which was owned by Ali, Datuk Azman Yahya and Datuk Amin Rafie Othman.

9 Song Hae-Gyo (宋慧乔) dropped as Etude spokeperson


10 Elianto fastest growing cosmetic company in Malaysia in 2006 at least in term of number of outlet

11 France honours Dr Lam who discover Nipah virus

Blog that link to this page: Nerdy Science Blog

Technorati Tag: Cosmetic : Beauty :Malaysia: Health Biotechnology

Taiwan's GLC in beauty and cosmetic industry, from salt to biotechnology

Taiwan veteran and most successful beauty and cosmetic brand is driven by private sector company call Sofnon. Sofnon own several international brand like New York Always Black , German Nobori, low cost product for teenages PLUS+ , and Italy in Ocean. Chairman,Champion Huang started the company in 1977.

In 2001, Taiyen or Taiwan Salt Industrial Corporation(A GLC) diversified to biotechnology and beauty and cosmetic industry. In 2003, the company has become a giant in beauty and cosmetic industry in Taiwan. Beauty and cosmetic industry become a strategic industry that promoted by Taiwan government. With low entry barrier lead to a number of new entrant in the industry.

To date, Sofnon and Taiyen remain the leader in the industry.

Bio Core Inc, one of the top three biotechnology company in US, invested 1.7 billion in Research and introduced Nano & Biotechnology series of Collagen products for medical treatment. Bio Core claim that there are the first company to obtain FDA approvals for sale of collagen based wound care products in it website.

Taiyen, uses Collagen products from Bio Core Inc and turn it into Pharmaceutical type products namely Medifil and Skin Temp II which are commonly use in the hospital for diabetic patient with chronic lesion and also burned patient for skin repair treatment respectively also known as skin grafting surgery.

The product is suitable for use on all kinds of cuts and wounds on the skin, such as burnt skin, scalded skin, difficult to heal wounds of diabetics patients. The result are exceedingly proven.

Taiyen together with Bio Core spent 1.5 billion to develop this technology.

International cosmetic brand Coco Chanel try to bid for the distribution right from Taiyen but Taiyen eventually grant the right to a direct selling company in Taiwan call Topoa.

The company have a series of product. However, their flagship product call Bio Collagen A+B Skin Repair Essence. A few of my friends used to spend RM5,000 for 5 treatment in beauty salon, this mean each treatment equivalent to RM1,000 but they never see their improvement on their skin after 5 treatment.

Most of my friends who spend just RM424 on the product claim that the result is much more visible after a few day. Their husband also claim that this low cost product is far more effective than the expensive treatment from beauty salon.

This is because the product developed using a technology use by pharmaceutical product to heal burn patient.

Technorati Tag: Cosmetic : Beauty :Malaysia: Health & wellness Biotechnology

Bio-Young enter ladies healthcare market

When I doing my regular window shopping in one of the Jaya Jusco shopping centre. A promotion lady hand me a leaflet.

It is from Bio-Young, a company that selling HGH product via multilevel marketing or direct selling. It is a new product from Bio-Young.

The new healthcare product, Phytogen Plus, target on curing women's period cramps, irregular period and low fertility.

This segment of market in Malaysia is dominant by one company, Keep Good Feel Corporation Sdn Bhd (Formerly known as Fasa Bebas Sdn Bhd).

Its product Lady Gold (picture) once dominant Malaysia's ladies healthcare product and at one point of time call Lady Vigra.

However, such market attracted a lot of competitors and Keep Good Feel Corporation Sdn Bhd has litigation on copyright infrigment with one of it major competitor.

Now, the company has a new competitor in Malaysia.

Technorati Tag: Biotechnology healthcare lady vigra pharmaceutical herb >Health & wellness

Vitamin E, tocotrienol and tocopherol

Vitamin E is no stranger to the world of skincare. Combined with vitamin A and C, the trio are a powerful anti-oxidant force in fighting free radicals that cause premature aging. But, after seven years of research, Dr Saadiah Sulaiman, a dermatologist at Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and her team have discovered tocotrienol, the predecessor to the common form of vitamin E, tocopherol.

According to Dr Saadiah, tocotrienols are 40-60 times more effective than tocopherol in neutralising free radicals. Due to its chemical structure, it is easily absorbed by cells and able to reduce skin redness caused by sun exposure. Indirectly, this prevents pigmentation, a common beauty woe of Asian women.
Interestingly, Dr Saadiah further discovered that this moisturising vitamin not only protected skin during sun exposure but also after, unlike sunblock. But she cautions: “Although tocotrienols protect skin from sun damage, it is not as good as SPF15 so you still need a sunblock.”

Made in Malaysia

What better source to harness the goodness of vitamin E than our very own palm oil. And with the recent discovery of tocotrienol, Malaysians are making full use of this vitamin in locally made skincare, Activ-E.
Activ-E was formulated based on clinical studies conducted on Tocotrienols and a combination of botanical extracts. Manufactured according to pharmaceutical standards, Activ-E addresses all the different skin types.

In Malaysia, a Mesdaq listing company Carotech Bhd, a subsidiary of second board listed pharmaceutical company Hovid Bhd manufacture tocotrienols and claim they control 80% of world market of tocotrienols.

Carotech Bhd a home grow biotechnology company shares price has rise for the past few weeks as they manufacturer biodiesel product which can substitude oil and petroleum and benefit from recent Budget 2006.


Technorati Tag: Biotechnology >Health & wellness

Unemployment and Biotechnology

On 12 September 2005 of The Star. A letter title 'Scientists can't find proper jobs" stated that:

I have friends who have graduated with degrees in botany, plant pathology, entomology or environmental biology but most of them are working in fields that are not related to their studies.

On 22 September 2005. Another reader send in a letter "Help science grads obtain jobs related to qualifications" stating that:

I know of a friend's biotechnologist daughter who is applying for a nursing job. A Universiti Sains Malaysian science graduate is working as a clerk in my company.

I have seen so many job advertisement recruiting nutritionist by some of our cosmetic and network marketing company. Apparently there is a mismatch between demand and supply of our manpower in biotechnology industry.

People in the recruitment industry, head hunter and job employment agency. There is an opportunity occur here. I come across a lot of employment agency specialize in IT industry. But there is no one in biotechnology industry in Malaysia.

Meanwhile, an interesting article on The Edge on INDIA'S BIOTECH QUEEN . When job opportunity is not there. Venture out to become an enterpreneur. Who knows you might be Bill Gates in biotechnology industry.

I feel you must be passion on what you study. Research job required long period of time that never incur any income. Only people with passion oramateurr will continue with the research like what happen in the IT industry, like founder of Microsoft, Yahoo etc. Their initial research generate no income. Only passion will make them continue.

Thus, do not study biotechnology because there is a potential, but because you are passion on it .






Technorati Tag: Biotechnology

Clara International venture into biotechnology

Dr Clara Chee, founder and Chairman of Clara International Beauty Group, announced the company plan to venture into biotechnology industry at the recent Biotechnology Asia 2005 Conference at the Putra World Trade Centre.

Gelang Pasir, which is used by the Javanese for its anti-inflamatory properties, can be used as a raw ingrediant for cosmetic product targeted at hypersensitive skin. The results of this herb have been proven as itis used in the Clara International range of cosmetic products.

Recently, Dr Clara Chee has discovered a herbal based skin gel that she claims cures psoriasis, a skin disorder, and is looking for partners to bring this product to the market.

" The product was not put throught clinical trails as it is not a pharmauceutical-grade product, but a skin-care product. So far, the product has been sucessful in the case studies we have cinducted and the testimonials from users have been positive. However, we will look into putting the product throught clinical trials at a later stage," Reported The Edge.

Clara International currently has two manufacturing plants located near its headquarters in Puchong, planning to set up a phase three plant, a facility that is used for the development of orally prescribed products.

Clara International'd OTC (over the counter) plant is used to develop over-the-counter products while the phase four plant is used to develop cosmetic products.

" We will be looking into herbal menopause therapy eventually once this plant is up and running. The therapy will be an alternative to normone replacement therapy(HRT)," She added.


Technorati Tag: Biotechnology

From Char Kuay Teow to Bio-technology.

INS Bioscience Bhd published its prospectus yesterday,which will be listed on Mesdaq end of July 2005.

Datuk David Yeat Sew Chuong, never went to university, started as a hawker selling "char kuay teow". He later join a direct selling company on a part time basis.

He form his own direct selling company after that and nearly bankrupt once.

He venture into high-tech industry via become a distributor of Digital dictionary imported from Taiwan. The margin for Digital dictionary diminished when everybody enter this industry.

He then venture to sell wheat grass, INS wheat grass is the only branded wheat grass in Malaysia.

We have a lot of company venture into healthcare product. A few even have listed on bursa Malaysia. But only a few invested in Research & Development(R&D) or bio-technology. Majority of them are marketing orientated company rather than R&D driven company.

With the listing of INS Bioscience Bhd on Mesdaq as a bio-technology company. He is one of the rising star in our country bio-technology industry.

Without any tertiary qualification. A person can become a successfully entrepreneur, techpreneur or bio-techpreneur.

What are you waiting for if you are a graduate?


Technorati Tag: Biotechnology > Health & wellness