After years of dedicated research, Focusfreda has achieved remarkable results: it was awarded the Second Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress by Shandong Province.

Recently, the 2025 Shandong Provincial Science and Technology Award Ceremony was held. Focusfreda, as the primary completing unit, together with Jiangnan University, Biofreda, the Shandong Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences, and other institutions, completed the project "Green Manufacturing and Industrial Application of Biomucopolysaccharides under the 'Dual Carbon' Context," which was awarded the Second Prize of the Shandong Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award.

This award represents a full recognition of Focusfreda's long-term commitment to technological innovation and its efforts to drive the green and low-carbon transition in biomanufacturing, while also highlighting the company's technical expertise and industrialization capabilities in areas such as high-quality production of bio-mucopolysaccharides, sustainable extraction, functional modification, and high-value applications.

1. Establishing a strong foothold within the Freda industrial chain to solidify our core advantage in bioactive raw materials

Shandong Focusfreda Biotech Co., Ltd. is a core supplier of raw materials for the medical aesthetics and healthcare sector under Lushang Freda Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Leveraging Freda's industrial resources and synergistic advantages across the pharmaceutical, medical aesthetics, and healthcare sectors, the company focuses on the R&D, production, and industrial application of bioactive raw materials such as hyaluronic acid, while continuously strengthening its comprehensive capabilities spanning from technological R&D and mass production to downstream applications.

Leveraging Freda's over 30 years of deep technical expertise and industrial resource advantages in the hyaluronic acid sector, Focusfreda has continuously strengthened its R&D innovation and mass production capabilities, establishing itself as one of the leading manufacturers in the sodium hyaluronate industry worldwide. The company possesses full-range production capacities for all product categories—including eye drops grade, injectable grade, food grade, and cosmetic grade—and holds production qualifications for pharmaceuticals and food products. Its products have obtained certifications in numerous countries and regions, and have passed multiple international standards including ISO9001, BRC, and HALAL; its products are exported to more than 70 countries and regions across the globe.

Leveraging its continuous technological accumulation, stable manufacturing capabilities, and prominent industry influence, the company has been recognized as a National-level "Little Giant" Enterprise in the category of Specialized, Refined, Unique, and Innovative Enterprises, as well as a National-level Manufacturing Single Champion Demonstration Enterprise; it also hosts innovative platforms such as a National Postdoctoral Research Station and a Shandong Provincial Enterprise Technology Center. The company has obtained over 100 authorized patents, including numerous international invention patents, which have provided a solid foundation for the company's ongoing efforts to drive technological upgrades and achieve high-quality development.

2. The implementation of achievements from the Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award has facilitated dual breakthroughs in both technology and industry within green manufacturing.

The award-winning projects focus on advancing green manufacturing and high-value applications of bio-polysaccharides such as hyaluronic acid and silver ear polysaccharides. Addressing key industry challenges—including low raw material conversion rates, high fermentation energy consumption, insufficient extraction and purification efficiency, and suboptimal product quality stability—these projects have established a comprehensive technological framework spanning the entire value chain, encompassing biosynthesis, intelligent fermentation, green extraction and purification, functional modification, and high-value applications.

This project has enhanced product safety, quality stability, and eco-friendly production levels by optimizing the hyaluronic acid biosynthesis system, employing a plant peptone fermentation process, and establishing an intelligent fermentation control and online process analysis system; simultaneously, by leveraging technologies such as multi-enzyme composite extraction and ultrafiltration–nanofiltration separation, the extraction and purification efficiency of tremella polysaccharides has been improved, and various novel modified bio-mucopolysaccharides have been developed, thereby further expanding the application scope of these products in high-end fields such as tissue engineering, pharmaceutical materials, medical aesthetic fillers, and regenerative medicine.

To date, the project's outcomes have been commercialized at institutions such as Focusfreda and Biofreda; the resulting products serve over 200 enterprises across more than 70 countries and regions worldwide, with broad applications in sectors including pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and health foods. Through the upgrade of green manufacturing processes, the project has reduced its total life-cycle carbon footprint by 33%, providing a demonstrative practical pathway for the green and low-carbon transition of the biomanufacturing industry.

3. Breaking through molecular weight boundaries to establish a comprehensive molecular weight hyaluronic acid product portfolio

The biological properties of hyaluronic acid are closely related to its molecular weight; products with different molecular weights cater to distinct application requirements across various sectors, including pharmaceuticals, medical aesthetics, cosmetics, and health foods. Focusing on the core technical challenge of precise control over hyaluronic acid molecular weight, Focusfreda has continuously pursued technological breakthroughs to drive its products from large-scale manufacturing toward refined, high-end, and differentiated development.

In the field of low-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid, the company has overcome the challenges associated with large-scale production of low-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid by leveraging its expertise in constructing high-activity hyaluronidase-producing bacterial strains, purifying enzymatic preparations, and employing precise restriction enzyme digestion technology, thereby successfully achieving mass production of 400Da low-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid raw materials.

In the field of high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid, the company has overcome the technical bottleneck in the stable production of pharmaceutical-grade hyaluronic acid with molecular weights above 2 million Da, achieving stable mass production of pharmaceutical-grade products exceeding 3 million Da, thereby providing a solid raw material foundation for the development of high-value-added products such as eye drops-grade and injectable-grade hyaluronic acid. Leveraging these technological and product advantages, the company's pharmaceutical-grade sodium hyaluronate has obtained one "A" status and two "I" statuses in China's CDE filing; two DMF registrations in South Korea; and two CEP certificates in the European Union. Additionally, the company has independently developed advanced technology for preparing plant-based nitrogen sources, enabling the industrial-scale fermentation process to achieve a maximum hyaluronic acid sodium yield of 14 g/L, thereby enhancing production efficiency and further advancing its green manufacturing capabilities.

From the precise synthesis of small-molecule hyaluronic acid (400 Da) to the stable mass production of pharmaceutical-grade high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid (above 3 million Da), Focusfreda leverages its comprehensive molecular weight product portfolio to meet diverse and sophisticated market demands, thereby continuously strengthening its competitive edge in the global hyaluronic acid raw material market.

4. Deepening industry–academia–research collaboration to jointly accelerate the commercialization of innovation outcomes with Jiangnan University

The synergy between industry, academia, and research represents a crucial pathway for Focusfreda to enhance its core technological capabilities and accelerate the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements. In recent years, the company has continuously deepened its collaborations with universities and research institutions, including Jiangnan University and the Shandong Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences, focusing on areas such as synthetic biology, strain improvement, enzyme engineering, fermentation process optimization, green manufacturing, and high-value applications, thereby establishing a collaborative innovation system that fosters deep integration between research and industry.

Since 2018, Focusfreda has established specialized R&D collaborations with institutions such as Jiangnan University to focus on low-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid; through continuous efforts to address key technical challenges—including the development of highly active hyaluronidase, enzymatic hydrolysis processes, and precise product preparation—the company has provided crucial technical support for the industrial-scale production of 400Da small-molecule hyaluronic acid.

In recent years, the company has further deepened its collaboration with Jiangnan University, engaging in collaborative innovation across key areas such as the green manufacturing of bio-mucopolysaccharides, breakthroughs in core technologies, and high-value applications, thereby accelerating the transformation of cutting-edge technologies into high-value pharmaceutical-grade products and industrial application scenarios. By integrating the research strengths of universities, the enterprise's engineering capabilities, and Focusfreda's industrial chain resources, the company is continuously enhancing its technological iteration speed and technology transfer efficiency, injecting new momentum into the high-quality development of the enterprise.

5. Adhering to innovation-driven development and advancing toward a new stage where technology and value take the lead

Looking ahead, Focusfreda will take its award of the Second Prize for Scientific and Technological Progress in Shandong Province as a new starting point to continue increasing its R&D investment, deepen its dual-drive strategy of "Technology + Talent," and further enhance the fermentation efficiency, product quality, and green manufacturing standards of bioactive raw materials such as hyaluronic acid.

The company will continue to leverage its core position as a key supplier in the Freda Medical Beauty & Health Industry Chain, building upon its collaborative innovation partnerships with universities and research institutions such as Jiangnan University, to accelerate the R&D and industrialization process of high-value-added pharmaceutical-grade products; simultaneously, the company will actively explore new growth areas such as sialic acid and ergothioneine, enrich its diversified product portfolio, and drive the enterprise's continuous transition from scale advantage to technological and value-driven advantages, thereby contributing more significantly to the development of the bio-economy and the achievement of the "Dual Carbon" goals.