Qingdao Bright Moon Seaweed Group Co., Ltd.

Qingdao Bright Moon Seaweed Group Co., Ltd. dates from 1968 and was converted to private ownership in 1998. Its headquarters is in the marine high-tech zone of Qingdao's West Coast New Area, Shandong Province, at No. 777 Bright Moon Road, Huangdao District.

The group processes large brown seaweed into six product families: seaweed functional ingredients, marine health foods, marine biomaterials, marine cosmetics, seaweed ecological fertiliser and marine cultural tourism. Alginates are the largest line, with the company reporting more than 40 per cent of the Chinese market and more than 30 per cent internationally. Mannitol and other functional sugar alcohols, fucoidan, seaweed polyphenols and seaweed enzymes make up the rest of the ingredient range. Products are sold in more than 100 countries and regions.

Manufacturing and research sit across what the group calls one world, two centres and three bases: a seaweed themed attraction, a biotechnology centre in Qingdao and a Shanghai centre, and production bases in Qingdao, at Dafeng in Jiangsu Province and in Chile. Research platforms include a national key laboratory for marine food processing and safety control, a Ministry of Agriculture key laboratory for seaweed fertilisers, a national and local engineering research centre and a postdoctoral workstation. The group holds 556 patents and nine PCT patents and has led or contributed to 28 national, industry and association standards. Certifications include ISO 9001, ISO 22000, ISO 14001, GMP, BRC, Kosher and HACCP.