This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on October 19, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: Integrated health supplements group Bioalpha Holdings Bhd aims to increase its export sales to China by partnering with Shanghai-based Jinrui Fortune Holding Group.

Its wholly-owned subsidiary, Bioalpha International Sdn Bhd, yesterday inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Jinrui to explore areas of collaboration.

The Chinese conglomerate is involved in traditional Chinese medicine and operates several medicinal halls across China, with a target to open 1,000 halls by 2025.

“The plan is for Jinrui to import health supplement products from Bioalpha to be sold at their [medicinal] halls,” said Bioalpha chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Mamat after the MoU signing ceremony. ”Bioalpha will also be able to market its products on Jinrui’s online portal.”

Abdul Rahman added that through the partnership, the group can further tap into a whole new client base and access Jinrui’s patients.

“Over the years, we have built a solid track record in China as we have actively participated in trade and marketing activities there. [Nonetheless], we feel there is still a lot of potential to be realised with our trade relations in China,” he said.

Currently, 40% of the group’s revenue is contributed by exports to China and Indonesia, and the other 60% by sales within Malaysia.

The group expects revenue contribution from the collaboration with Jinrui to start in the second quarter of 2019.

According to an independent market research report by Smith Zander International, the Chinese health supplement market is forecast to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 33.5% to US$221.6 billion (RM921.85 billion) by end of 2018.

Bioalpha said it will also participate in the Jinrui Chenzhou (Hunan) Integrated traditional Chinese medicine project, which includes the development of a herb farm, a Good Manufacturing Practice-certified factory and a product research and development facility.

Bioalpha will also participate in the Jinrui project to develop eco-health tourism in Chenzhou City, Hunan Province, it added.

Shares of Bioalpha closed unchanged at 25.5 sen yesterday, with a market capitalisation of RM206.55 million.