Lansheng Biotech: Creating another “Huawei” in the field of fine chemicals

Established in 2014, Hebei Lansheng Biotech Co., Ltd. (Lansheng Biotech) has been growing rapidly in recent years. Due to its considerable resources in the research, development and manufacturing of technicals, Lansheng Biotech ranked 65 on the list of China’s Top 100 pesticide companies in 2020, with total sales of over RMB1 billion (US$154 million). AgroPages recently interviewed Dong Zhipeng (President of Lansheng Biotech), who introduced the company’s R&D and production quality capacities and expressed his opinions on the landscape of the global pesticide industry and the development direction of players, showing impressive passion and ambition.

Dong Zhipeng, Group President of Hebei Lansheng Biotech Technology Co., Ltd.

 “Our goal is to make every product an industry leader”

1. Please briefly introduce the development of Lansheng Biotech

Lansheng Biotech was established in 2014 and is now a pesticide company focusing on “Green Chemistry Innovation.” It is also a multi-channel, multi-field and multi-mode collaborative platform for innovation. Currently, we have four production sites and a green chemistry research institute, which are distributed in provincial or national parks in various provinces of Northern China. We have more than 800 employees, including some 200 engineers and technicians, and our sales exceeded RMB1 billion in 2020. The corporate vision of Lansheng Biotech is to create an innovative company, like Huawei, but in the field of fine chemicals.

Four production sites of Lansheng Biotech

The green research institute of Lansheng Biotech

2. Please highlight some advantageous products of Lansheng Biotech. What are their benefits?

Our core products include clethodim, spirotetramat, metribuzin, brassinolide and boscalid, which offer benefits as follows:

-Capacity design: Lansheng Biotech designs production capacity according to the market size of products, and our goal for every product is make them leaders in the industry in terms of product quality, process and supply. Currently, we have an 8,000t/a clethodim production line, which is the largest in the world. We are the first manufacturer of spirotetramat in China, capable of producing 500 tons per year, and we plan to expand this to 1,500 tons. We also have the largest design production capacity of brassinolide and boscalid in China.

-Product quality: Lansheng Biotech is committed to the continual improvement of quality. We can produce clethodim technical with a concentration of over 95%, being the only company that can offer this quality level in large quantities in the world at present. A higher concentration means fewer impurities, which effectively reduces the degradation of clethodim technicals. The degradation rate of formulations made with high concentrations of technicals can be controlled within 3%.

Clethodim technical products of Lansheng Biotech

-Automatic production level: Automatic production has been achieved in all the company’s production plants, and continuous production has been realized for several products.

-Safety and environmental protection management: Lansheng Biotech has resolutely implemented the “National Safety and Environmental Protection Policy,” and each factory is designed and built according to local benchmark standards. Lansheng Biotech regards safety and environmental protection management as its advantages and believes that they will benefit the company.

“Green Chemistry Innovation” assists the development of chemical science and will advance society to a new era”

3. Please talk about Lansheng Biotech ‘s concept of “Green Chemistry Innovation” and how this concept is being implemented in the processes of development and production.

Lansheng Biotech’s concept of “Green Chemistry Innovation” aims to ensure the development of new technologies for pesticide technicals, as well as to focus on creating new and universal technologies and equipment for the fine chemical industry.

Green Chemistry Innovation means that during the process of producing useful chemicals atom utilization rate is high, the production process is environment-friendly, and the “three wastes” (gas, water and solid waste) are recycled. High energy consumption and high levels of pollution are common in the fine chemical industry today. Our concept of Green Chemistry Innovation aims to explore the necessary technological innovation currently demanded by chemical science and society, representing an irresistible general trend. Through the management of energy systems and the construction of green factories, Lansheng Biotech has greatly improved the recycling and transformation level of resources, and helped promote the intelligent and green development of pesticide technical production.

The green chemical technologies created by Lansheng Biotech have shown their advantages to the industry. They are used by peers in the fine chemical industry and are fully recognized by local governments, further motivating us to continue our method of innovation.

4. When introducing the advantages of your products, you mentioned automation and continuous production. Why are they important to Lansheng Biotech?

Automatic production has been achieved for Lansheng Biotech’s main products and continuous production for some products.

Automatic and continuous manufacturing can guarantee a more stable production process and improve safety during production. Therefore, the discharge of “three wastes” is more predictable and easier to manage, which is conducive to quality management and maintaining product quality.

Automation will also inevitably require less labor, reduce human errors, and guarantee safety, environmental protection, product quality and production efficiency.

Automatic production console of Lansheng Biotech

 “Value partners for coexistence, sticking to cooperation and win-win outcome”

5. Lansheng Biotech has its own characteristics in terms of building its upstream and downstream supply chains. Please tell us how it built its “production alliance.”

Lansheng Biotech always attaches importance to its strategic cooperation with upstream and downstream supply chains, as well as to resource integration, to tackle the bottlenecks of the industrial chain.

Guided by the concept of “Coexistence and Win-Win,” Lansheng Biotech has united a group of close partners. Through our cooperation, certain partnerships were promoted to partners for starting new businesses and growing together. The company is not only just a buyer or a seller to our partners, it is also a provider of various technical support services and production management. In addition, we have our own production facilities for some key intermediates, extending to the upstream supply chain.

Guided by our inclusive, credible, pragmatic and shared corporate culture and based on the concept of Coexistence and Win-Win, we have established alliances with several companies based on the strength of our advanced manufacturing technology, scientific management methodologies, forward-looking market sensitivity and operational ability.

6. Can you tell us about the root cause of and motivation for Lansheng Biotech’s rapid development?

The first is the country’s general development conditions. The steady development pace of the country, the industry’s good supply capacity of basic raw materials, and our accumulated experience and lessons learnt in the fine chemical industry over many years have played a key role in the rapid development of the company. As a hero is nothing more than a product of their time, Lansheng Biotech would not have developed rapidly and continuously without these decisive conditions.

A business without talents will not succeed and grow. Innovative talents who are ambitious are the core drivers of company development. The rapid development of Lansheng Biotech is inseparable from the talents who joined the company and aspired to make their careers. To help these special talents lead teams to success is the mission of Lansheng Biotech’s platform and the fundamental reason for its rapid development. The aim is to contribute to scientific development and technological progress and preserve ever-lasting green mountains and lucid waters, through the efforts of a team of like-minded people to break through the bottlenecks limiting industrial development. This is the greatest motivation for everyone at Lansheng Biotech.

7. What are the marketing methodologies of Lansheng Biotech both at home and abroad?

Since its establishment in 2014, Lansheng Biotech has been well recognized by the domestic market, because of our good reputation and excellent product performance.

We only began operating in foreign markets in the last two years, and we are still in our primary stage. We offer unique quality products, have an efficient management system, and are willing to cooperate with foreign partners. We are certain that we can provide quality pesticides to farmers around the world.

The specific plan of Lansheng Biotech for advancing its foreign trade is to establish roots in China and plan for the rest of the world. Relying on China’s sound industrial system, healthy and stable social environment, and the international cooperation network created by many outstanding predecessors, we will compete in the global market with our stable supply capability.

Whether at home or abroad, we will cooperate with our partners in many fields and in many ways based on our concept of “Coexistence and Win-Win.” Lansheng Biotech is committed to creating an innovation and cooperation platform for the fine chemical industry.

We are actively registering our flagship products in overseas markets and completing our dossiers for product registration. At present, we are cooperating with over 40 customers to register our products in more than 20 countries. We will exert greater efforts related to product registration, especially in key markets, such as Brazil.

Lansheng Biotech’s foreign trade team and overseas customers

 “Only by taking huge innovation risks can we achieve great success”

8. How do you view the trend for many domestic pesticide companies to relocate their production bases to the northwest region? What changes will happen to the pesticide production landscape of China in the future?

This is the outcome of an industrial policy adjustment that encourages and supports the shift of the industry’s production to the northeast region. Regardless of where a production base is, safety and environmental protection are important and must not be compromised. 

China’s pesticide industry has experienced tremendous changes and made great progress in the last ten years, beginning with the change in the understanding of the industry by the CPC and the central government. Due to the support of the central government, the industry ushered in a decade of vigorous advancement.

The future landscape of the industry is bound to be the scenario of the strong ones becoming stronger. Companies with unique characteristics will have a share in the market and those who adapt to changes will be the big winners of the future.

9. Under the new international trade and policy environment, how should China’s outstanding pesticide manufacturers compete in the global agrochemical industry and create a new landscape and order?

Firstly, be well prepared in cognition. The era of extensive development due to material shortages is over. Never attempt to attain profits by means of non-compliance. Instead, we should make every endeavor better.

Secondly, take the right action. Cognition is not enough unless combined with the right actions. Safety and environmental protection are the red lines that cannot be crossed; high product quality is the foundation for development and keeping customers; low production cost is the basis for competition; and good business integrity is the super business card in a credit-centered society.

Finally, keep learning and innovating. Learning will drive one to make progress, and we will be taller if we stand on the shoulders of giants. Continuous learning will enable us to have what others have. Innovation determines where we will go. Only by doing a good job in terms of innovation can we have what others do not have.

However, these efforts are not enough if we want to have the ability to participate in the creation of a new international landscape and order. Something more should be done:

- Dare to shoulder responsibilities and make breakthroughs;

- It is very important to establish brand awareness and ensure good quality. Every excellent company has its brand products, and quality ensures their longevity;

- A strong sense of cooperation. Through the concept of Coexistence and Win-Win, every player in the industry will succeed.

Business contact:

Adam Sun

Export director

Tel: 86+531-88685458 86+18663762788(Mobile)

Email：shb@lanshenggroup.cn

If you also want to tell your company story, or share your insights of the industry, please contact:

Mickey Shan

mickey@agropages.com