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For centuries, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has existed in two worlds at once: revered as an ancient healing philosophy while simultaneously facing accusations of fuelling wildlife trafficking, environmental destruction and dangerous pseudoscience. In the 21st century, those contradictions have become impossible to ignore.
China’s government insists the modernisation of TCM represents cultural preservation and healthcare innovation. Yet environmental campaigners, animal welfare organisations and human-rights advocates argue that behind the polished language of “heritage” and “natural healing” lies a system still struggling to confront some of its darkest realities.
The question now is no longer whether Chinese medicine laws are changing. They are.
The real question is whether they are changing fast enough.
The Old System: Tradition Above Accountability
Before China introduced its landmark Traditional Chinese Medicine Law in 2017, regulation surrounding TCM was fragmented, inconsistent and often opaque. Traditional remedies existed within a legal grey area where historical use frequently outweighed scientific scrutiny.
For decades, animal-derived ingredients remained embedded within sections of the industry. Tiger bone, rhino horn, pangolin scales, bear bile and leopard bone products became symbols of a black market that conservationists say pushed several species closer to extinction.
China’s original wildlife framework often focused less on banning exploitation and more on regulating utilisation. That distinction became critical.
Critics argued the system effectively legitimised commercial wildlife use under the banner of “special purposes,” including medicine, research and cultural preservation. Conservation groups warned that legal loopholes enabled laundering of illegal wildlife products into supposedly legitimate supply chains.
The international backlash intensified after COVID-19 exposed the global risks associated with wildlife markets and zoonotic disease transmission.
Suddenly, wildlife protection was no longer just a conservation issue.
It became a global public-health emergency.
The 2017 Traditional Chinese Medicine Law: China’s Attempt at Modernisation
China’s Traditional Chinese Medicine Law officially came into force on July 1, 2017, representing the country’s first comprehensive legal framework dedicated specifically to TCM.
The legislation aimed to professionalise and standardise the sector while promoting research, practitioner licensing and integration with modern healthcare systems.
Supporters hailed it as a turning point.
The law introduced stronger oversight for TCM clinics, encouraged scientific development and sought to improve product quality control. It also formalised the government’s ambition to position TCM as a globally recognised medical industry.
China framed the move as both cultural preservation and economic strategy.
But critics quickly noticed what the law did not fully address.
The legislation never comprehensively banned wildlife ingredients used in traditional medicine. Instead, it largely coexisted alongside China’s broader Wildlife Protection Law, which still allowed certain commercial uses of protected species under licensing systems.
Environmental organisations argued that this created a dangerous contradiction:
China claimed to protect biodiversity while simultaneously maintaining legal pathways for wildlife-derived medicinal products.
Wildlife Protection Reforms After COVID-19
Following the coronavirus outbreak, China introduced sweeping restrictions on wildlife consumption in 2020. The National People’s Congress announced a ban on illegal wildlife trade and consumption for food purposes.
International headlines celebrated the move as historic.
But conservationists warned the reforms stopped short of addressing the medicinal trade.
Under revised frameworks, wildlife use for non-food purposes — including traditional medicine — often remained permissible under licensing systems. Critics say this distinction undermined the broader conservation message.
Groups including the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) have repeatedly argued that endangered species protections remain weakened by exemptions tied to medicinal demand. Pangolin scales and leopard bone substitutes became particularly controversial flashpoints.
The core ethical issue remains unresolved:
Can a nation truly claim leadership on biodiversity conservation while preserving legal markets for wildlife-based medicine?
The Pangolin Crisis and the Limits of Reform
No animal better symbolises the tensions surrounding Chinese medicine law than the pangolin.
The pangolin is now considered the world’s most trafficked mammal, largely due to demand for its scales in traditional medicine. Although China strengthened protections for pangolins and removed some references to pangolin ingredients from official pharmacopoeias, illegal trafficking continues across Asia and Africa.
Recent legal studies suggest China’s judicial system is increasingly treating pangolin protection more seriously, particularly through public-interest litigation and stricter enforcement mechanisms.
That marks undeniable progress.
Yet campaigners argue enforcement remains inconsistent, and the existence of licensed wildlife-use systems still creates opportunities for illegal markets to thrive alongside legal ones.
For many conservationists, partial reform is no longer enough.
Animal Welfare: The Conversation China Still Avoids
One of the most uncomfortable truths surrounding TCM is that China still lacks comprehensive national animal welfare legislation comparable to many Western countries.
Animal rights advocates say this gap matters enormously.
Even where wildlife laws exist, welfare standards surrounding farming, captivity and extraction practices often remain weak or poorly enforced. Critics argue that discussions about TCM regulation frequently focus on conservation status while ignoring animal suffering itself.
Bear bile farming remains one of the most internationally condemned examples. Although synthetic and herbal alternatives exist, animal welfare groups continue campaigning against the practice, describing it as inherently cruel.
The broader issue extends beyond endangered species.
The 21st-century debate increasingly asks whether any medicinal system — traditional or modern — should rely on animal suffering when viable alternatives exist.
Even some TCM practitioners now openly support phasing out wildlife-derived ingredients altogether, warning the association damages the credibility of the industry globally.
Human Rights and Cultural Politics
The debate surrounding Chinese medicine laws is not purely scientific or environmental.
It is deeply political.
China considers TCM a pillar of national identity and soft power. Government policy increasingly promotes traditional medicine internationally through trade agreements, overseas clinics and World Health Organization engagement.
Supporters argue criticism of TCM sometimes crosses into cultural prejudice or Western hypocrisy. They point out that pharmaceutical industries worldwide have histories tied to unethical experimentation, environmental harm and corporate exploitation.
That criticism is fair.
But human-rights advocates argue cultural heritage cannot become a shield against legitimate ethical scrutiny.
The controversy intensified after the WHO incorporated traditional medicine into parts of its global health framework. Animal protection groups warned that international endorsement risked legitimising wildlife-based remedies unless strict ethical boundaries were established.
Meanwhile, concerns also persist regarding labour protections, transparency in supply chains and the regulation of unlicensed practitioners operating both inside and outside China.
The challenge for global policymakers is delicate:
How do governments respect cultural traditions while still enforcing universal standards on science, conservation and ethics?
Environmental Consequences Beyond Wildlife
The environmental impact of TCM extends far beyond endangered animals.
Demand for medicinal plants has also intensified deforestation, overharvesting and habitat destruction across parts of Asia and Africa. Some species used in herbal medicine now face sustainability concerns due to industrial-scale harvesting.
Ironically, China’s newer ecological laws increasingly acknowledge biodiversity protection as a national priority. Recent legal reforms promote ecological civilisation, habitat protection and environmental accountability.
Yet environmental campaigners argue a contradiction remains at the heart of policy:
China cannot simultaneously present itself as a global biodiversity leader while maintaining legal structures that continue to commercialise wildlife use in medicine.
That contradiction matters globally because China’s TCM market is enormous — and expanding.
The country has openly positioned traditional medicine as part of its future pharmaceutical and healthcare strategy, with growing international exports and research investment.
In practical terms, this means China’s legal standards increasingly influence wildlife markets far beyond its borders.
Has China Actually Made Progress?
The honest answer is yes — but not enough.
Compared with previous decades, China has undeniably strengthened regulation, improved enforcement tools and tightened some wildlife protections. Certain endangered ingredients have been removed from official medicine lists, synthetic substitutes are receiving greater support and legal penalties for trafficking have increased.
There is also growing recognition inside China itself that wildlife exploitation damages both biodiversity and the reputation of TCM.
But the reforms remain incomplete.
As long as legal exemptions exist for medicinal wildlife use, critics argue illegal trade networks will continue exploiting loopholes. As long as animal welfare protections remain secondary to commercial interests, international concern will persist.
And as long as evidence standards for some traditional remedies remain weaker than those expected in evidence-based medicine, scientific criticism will continue globally.
The 21st century demands something more than symbolic reform.
It demands ethical consistency.
What the Rest of the World Needs to Know
The global conversation about Chinese medicine often becomes polarised between blind defence and blanket condemnation.
Neither approach is useful.
Traditional medicine is not inherently illegitimate. Many plant-based remedies have contributed to modern pharmacology, and millions of people worldwide continue to rely on traditional healing systems alongside conventional medicine.
But cultural tradition cannot exempt any industry from ethical accountability.
The future of TCM — if it hopes to gain genuine international legitimacy — will likely depend on three things:
First, a complete and enforceable end to the use of endangered wildlife ingredients.
Second, stronger animal welfare protections across all medicinal industries.
Third, far greater scientific transparency regarding efficacy, safety and sourcing.
The irony is that many modern TCM practitioners already support these changes.
The deeper threat to traditional medicine may no longer come from Western criticism.
It may come from an industry resisting the reforms needed to survive ethically in a rapidly changing world.
References and Further Reading
- Traditional Chinese Medicine Law of China (2016)
- Wildlife Protection Law of the PRC (2022 Version)
- World Health Organization – Regulatory Frameworks and Evidence Requirements for Traditional Medicines
- Environmental Investigation Agency – China’s Wildlife Protection Law
- EIA – China Moving Towards Ending Use of Threatened Wildlife in Traditional Medicine
- World Animal Protection – Ending the Exploitation of Wild Animals in Traditional Medicine
- Global Biodiversity Conservation Requires Traditional Chinese Medicine to Tackle Illegal Wildlife Trade
- Oxford Martin School – China’s Announcement on Wildlife Trade
- The Guardian – TCM Supporters Condemn Illegal Wildlife Trade
- TIME – Traditional Chinese Medical Authorities and Rare Animal Parts Trade
