Summary: The EIA report of CCGB's technology upgrading project of stevia production lines was accepted and publicised in June, and the EIA report of Hebei Yuwei's D-mannose & inositol production project was accepted and publicised in July.

The environmental impact assessment (EIA) report of Chenguang Biotech Group Co., Ltd. (CCGB)'s technology upgrading project of stevia production lines was accepted and publicised on 20 June.

This project plans to increase the extraction efficiency and daily processing capacity of stevioside by upgrading the production equipment and also looks to increase the utilisation rate and added value of stevia rebaudiana by adding new equipment for the production of chlorogenic acid and chlorogenic acid salt from stevia rebaudiana, which will ultimately enhance its product competitiveness.

Overview of CCGB's project:

• Construction nature: Expansion and retrofitting
• Location: Quzhou Economic Development Zone, Handan City, Hebei Province
• Total investment: USD3.19 million (RMB21.31 million), of which USD59,824 (RMB400,000) for environmental protection
• Construction content:
• To automate all the stevia production lines and upgrade the existing or construct new utilities for the original production lines
• To install new equipment for the production of chlorogenic acid salt from stevia rebaudiana, which will increase the processing capacity of stevioside up to 4.5 t/d
• To build a new crystallisation line for 200 t/a stevia crystal
• To install chlorogenic acid production equipment
• Consumption of raw materials:
• Before the upgrade: 12,000 t/a of the dry leaves of stevia rebaudiana
• After the upgrade: 13,500 t/a of the dry leaves of stevia rebaudiana
• Labour quota: No additional employee
• Working system: Three 8-hour shifts per workday; the stevia workshop operates 300 working days annually.
• Construction period: 3 months

The EIA report of Hebei Yuwei Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (Hebei Yuwei)'s D-mannose and inositol production project was accepted and publicised on 8 July.

Overview of Hebei Yuwei's project:

• Construction nature: Expansion
• Location: Suning County, Cangzhou City, Henan Province
• Floor area: 5,000 m² (no additional site area)
• Total investment: USD13.46 million (RMB90 million) of which USD149,560 (RMB1 million) for environmental protection
• Construction content: To renovate a mannose production workshop in the existing factory area and purchase equipment such as resin column, crystalliser, conversion tank, storage tank, centrifugal machine, filter press, precision filter, simulated moving bed, membrane filtration machine, vacuum concentrator, drier, grinder and mixer.
• Production capacity:
• 2,200 t/a of D-mannose
• 2,200 t/a of inositol
• By-products: 1,122 t/a of mannose mother liquor; 2,079 t/a of inositol mother liquor; 40.425 t/a of protein residue
• Production process: This project uses starch as raw material to produce mannose and inositol through the enzymolysis with amylase, glucoamylase and invertase, purification and other processes (the production process does not include fermentation)
• Consumption of major raw material: 6,303 t/a of corn starch
• Construction period: 2 months
• Labour quota: No additional employee
• Working system: Three 8-hour per workday, totalling 330 working days annually.

 

With a registered capital of USD2.99 million (RMB20 million), Hebei Yuwei was established in Dec. 2010. Its main products include inositol, phytic acid, sodium phytate and calcium hydrogen phosphate.