Recently, the Central Plains Medical Science City in Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone was buzzing with activity as the purification and renovation project for the Conforta FSMP production base officially commenced. This milestone not only marks a significant step in the company's development, but also signals a solid advance for the Medical Science City toward its goal of becoming a leading platform for the national medical nutrition industry.

Conforta FSMP

Conforta FSMP Production Base: Clear Planning for Growth

The Conforta FSMP production base has a well-defined construction plan. The first phase will focus on establishing a powder production line, while the second phase will center on a liquid-based (emulsion) FSMP (Foods for Special Medical Purposes) production line. The company aims to expand its product portfolio to include more than 15 medical nutrition products within five years.

To achieve this goal, Confutmed will rely on an intelligent production system and implement strict quality control, building a comprehensive medical nutrition industry platform that spans the entire value chain — from R&D, manufacturing, to distribution.

What Are FSMPs? A Lifeline for Special Needs Patients

FSMP stands for Foods for Special Medical Purposes, specially formulated for patients with specific medical conditions. For example, children with Phenylketonuria (PKU) cannot metabolize phenylalanine normally, often leading to developmental delays and intellectual disabilities. These children require a strict diet low in phenylalanine — and the FSMPs they consume are often referred to as "medical milk" due to their therapeutic role.

FSMPs serve a wide range of populations — from premature infants, babies with food allergies or lactose intolerance, to the elderly with chronic conditions, and even cancer patients or post-surgery individuals.

Market Growth and Potential

According to the official website of the China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA), there are currently 269 FSMP products approved in China. From 2019 to 2024, the FSMP market in China grew from approximately CNY 7.3 billion to CNY 23.2 billion, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.1%.

However, compared to mature markets like the U.S. and Europe, China's FSMP coverage remains low — only 3% of the target population in 2024, far below the over 40% coverage in the U.S. This indicates that the Chinese FSMP market still holds tremendous potential.

A Blue Ocean with Policy Support

The "Economic Reference News" from Xinhua News Agency pointed out that China's FSMP market is facing unprecedented opportunities. In recent years, the government has introduced a series of favorable policies, and the number of approved FSMPs has grown rapidly.

On April 7, 2025, the Ministry of Commerce, the National Health Commission, and 11 other departments jointly issued the "Special Action Plan for Promoting Health Consumption", which explicitly called for optimizing the supply of special food products and "focusing on the development of Foods for Special Medical Purposes."

According to relevant research, China’s FSMP market is projected to reach CNY 53.1 billion by 2029, with a five-year CAGR of 18.0% — indicating that this market remains a largely untapped blue ocean.

Confutmed: A Sino-Foreign Joint Venture with Vision

Confutmed Medical Food (Zhengzhou) Co., Ltd., located in the heart of the Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone — the Central Plains Medical Science City — is a Sino-foreign joint venture and one of the first companies to enter Zhengzhou specializing in FSMP and medical nutrition products.

The newly launched purification facility strictly adheres to FSMP production standards, serving as the core infrastructure for product R&D, pilot-scale production, and large-scale manufacturing, laying a solid hardware foundation for future product commercialization.

On April 27, 2025, Confutmed also partnered with Beijing Shangxiutang Pharmaceutical Technology Co., Ltd. to establish Kangfute (Beijing) Technology Co., Ltd. as a medical nutrition R&D center, focusing on FSMP, professional sports nutrition, microbiome research, and TCM-based medical nutrition.

Building a CDMSO Platform for the Future

Confutmed has big ambitions. The company is committed to integrating medical, scientific, and industrial resources to build China’s first innovative "Medical Nutrition CDMSO Platform" — offering integrated solutions for R&D, production, and marketing in the domestic market.

Meanwhile, the Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone is actively integrating the Henan Medical Science Academy, the Central Plains Medical Science City, and the biopharmaceutical and health industry cluster, forming a synergistic system of “One Institute, One City, One Industrial Cluster”, and striving to become the central region’s leading biomedical and health industry hub.

In the future, the Confutmed production base will leverage the policy support and industrial infrastructure of the Central Plains Medical Science City to form deep strategic partnerships with well-known domestic and international research institutions, Class-3 hospitals, and leading universities, building an "Industry-Academia-Research-Clinical Application" integrated innovation system to accelerate product upgrades and clinical application transformations.

（By Liu Huili, Senior Reporter, Henan Daily Media Group）

Editor-in-Chief | Yang Ling
Reviewer | Liu Huili
Editor | Lin Zhinan