In mid-September on the Longzhong plateau, autumn rains refresh the land, blending the fragrances of medicinal herbs and potatoes. On September 8, the 2026 mainstream media 'Quality Gansu Tour' team visited four key sites in Dingxi: Dingxi Longfeng Starch Products Co., Ltd., Dingxi High-Strength Fastener Co., Ltd., the China Medicine Capital Longxi Medicinal Plant Nursery, and Gansu Guangyao Baiyunshan Traditional Chinese Medicine Technology Co., Ltd., witnessing how this 'Millennium Medicine Town' and 'China's Potato Capital' leverage quality transformation to activate development momentum and accelerate the building of a modern industrial system.

The 'Quality Breakthrough' of a Single Wide Noodle: Dingxi, known as 'China's Potato Capital', maintains a stable potato planting area of approximately 3 million mu, with an annual output exceeding 5 million tons. However, for a long period, local potato processing was largely stuck in the primary stage of starch production, failing to fully unlock the value potential of these 'earthly eggs'. Entering Dingxi Longfeng Starch Products Co., Ltd., one sees spacious, clean modern plants and a 100,000-grade purification workshop. Established in 2005 as a provincial-level key agricultural industrialization leading enterprise, the company primarily processed refined potato starch during the '13th Five-Year Plan' period, but its development was constrained by monotonous product forms and low added value. In 2023, seizing the opportunity presented by the 'Dingxi Wide Noodle' regional culinary IP, the company fully initiated a strategic transformation, shifting from traditional starch processing to deep processing of wide noodles. Quality enhancement is firmly underpinned by technological innovation. The company has dedicatedly developed its proprietary alum-free coating steam process, which not only solves the industry's health issue of adding alum for elasticity in traditional noodles but also achieves the functional breakthroughs of 'instant edible fresh noodles upon steeping' and 'quick-cooking dry noodles without soaking'. In the 100,000-grade purification workshop, automated wide noodle production lines operate in an orderly manner. Currently, the company has established an annual production capacity of 10,000 tons each for fresh and dry noodles, offering forty products across nine series, including instant pure potato soup noodles, hotpot fresh noodles, and premium gift boxes. Its products have passed ISO9001 quality management system certification, HACCP food safety management system certification, and green food certification. Superior quality forms the confidence for market expansion. In 2025, the company's annual output value reached 30 million yuan; in the first eight months of 2026, output value has already surpassed 20 million yuan. Products now reach over 20 provinces nationwide, and 'Dingxi Wide Noodles' are transforming from 'earthly eggs' into 'golden beans' that boost local incomes.

The 'Resolute Responsibility' of a Single Screw: On the afternoon of the 8th, the interview team visited Dingxi High-Strength Fastener Co., Ltd. Founded in 1966, this enterprise originated from the Lanzhou Xigu Standard Parts Factory, relocating to Dingxi in 1969 and being renamed Dingxi High-Strength Screw Factory. After six decades of relentless progress, it has evolved into a national high-tech enterprise and one of the first batch of specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative 'Little Giant' enterprises designated by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, covering a total area of 180,000 square meters, employing nearly a thousand people, and achieving an annual production capacity of 150,000 tons. The journey from a small Northwest factory to a leading player in the industry is driven by an extreme pursuit of quality. The company focuses on high-end equipment manufacturing sectors such as wind power, nuclear power, petrochemicals, and rail transit. In the wind power sector, its products comprehensively cover core components for all types of onshore and offshore wind turbines, serving industry leaders like Goldwind, Sany Renewable Energy, and Windey Energy. In the nuclear power sector, it is a qualified supplier to the three major nuclear power groups and the only domestically designated nuclear fasteners production base by China Nuclear Power Engineering Co., Ltd., with products used in benchmark domestic nuclear projects like Hualong One, Daya Bay, and Fuqing, as well as overseas projects in Karachi and Chashma, Pakistan. In terms of technical breakthroughs, the company has achieved domestic substitution for fasteners in nuclear power blasting valves, breaking foreign monopolies; its environmentally friendly anti-corrosion surface treatment technology can withstand a neutral salt spray test for up to 1440 hours; and its wind turbine blade studs show significantly improved impact performance at minus 40 degrees Celsius. As of the end of May 2026, the company has accumulated 79 authorized patents, including 8 invention patents. As a member unit of the National Fastener Standardization Technical Committee, it has led or participated in drafting 2 international standards and 12 national standards, with the independently formulated national standard series for 'Fasteners for Nuclear Power Plants' filling a domestic gap in nuclear fastener standards. A single tiny screw is now supporting the 'safety backbone' of major national equipment.

The 'Intelligent Guardianship' of a Single Seed: Leaving Dingxi city, the team drove to Longxi County. In September, Longxi is filled with the dense fragrance of medicinal herbs. Within the 500-mu China Medicine Capital Longxi Medicinal Plant Nursery, authentic medicinal materials like Astragalus and Codonopsis flourish. The team first visited the 'National Medicinal Plant Germplasm Resources Bank (Gansu Bank)', officially approved in August 2023. This resource bank houses 7 low-temperature storage rooms for long-term, medium-term, and short-term preservation, two of which are industry-leading intelligent, fully automated germplasm storage units. Through the glass curtain wall, multiple layers of tall blue material boxes were visible, with automated shuttle stackers and deftly moving robotic arms operating in coordination. 'No personnel are needed to enter the storage area, avoiding temperature fluctuations and human contamination. Each seed has its exclusive QR code, containing comprehensive information on variety, germination rate, and collection details,' Senior Agronomist Zhang Jinwen from the Longxi County Agricultural Technology Extension Center explained to the team. With a total storage capacity of 160,000 samples, the bank currently preserves over 12,000 accessions from 600 medicinal plant species. The nursery has also established a DNA barcode database covering 120 common Chinese medicinal herbs. Leaving the germplasm bank, the team entered the multi-span glass intelligent factory seedling room, newly operational in 2026. In this 3,660-square-meter modern greenhouse, three-dimensional cultivation racks are stacked layer upon layer, with integrated water-fertilizer pipelines providing precise drip irrigation. Zhang Jinwen noted, 'Traditional seedling raising completely depended on weather conditions. Now temperature, humidity, and light can all be controlled as needed, allowing sowing, cutting, and tissue culture seedling acclimatization to run continuously throughout the year.' This year's newly introduced Trollius chinensis, which had a natural germination rate of only about 60%, now achieves a rate above 90% in the greenhouse with precise temperature and humidity control, and the seedling cycle has been shortened from two months to about forty days. The nursery has cumulatively introduced 280 Chinese medicinal herb varieties, successfully domesticated 240, and promoted the cultivation of 40 optimal ones. The 'identity information' and 'health records' of each seed are precisely documented, safeguarding the quality of authentic medicinal materials from this starting point.

The 'Green Revolution' of a Single Technology: The team's final stop was Gansu Guangyao Baiyunshan Traditional Chinese Medicine Technology Co., Ltd. As a key strategic layout in Northwest China for Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings, a Fortune 500 company, this enterprise has rapidly progressed from establishment and production launch to provincial-level specialized and innovative enterprise and national high-tech enterprise within just a few years. It achieved an output value of 160 million yuan in 2025 and completed 45.47 million yuan in the first quarter of 2026. The company has built 5 workshops and 11 standard production lines. Relying on a 'trinity' R&D system that includes the Gansu Provincial Traditional Chinese Medicine Fermentation Engineering Research Center and Gansu Provincial Enterprise Technology Center, the company uses synthetic biology technologies to focus on the research and transformation of substitutes for rare and endangered Chinese medicinal herbs. It has achieved multiple results in artificial substitutes for in vitro cultured bezoar, Antrodia cinnamomea, Black Termite Fungus, and Saussurea involucrata, with several already in commercial application. Additionally, in collaboration with Lanzhou University, the company is delving into functional probiotic modern fermentation technology for Chinese medicines, launching a series of fermented products from medicinal and edible herbs. This key Guangdong-Gansu cooperation project – 'technology empowering local resources, industry driving regional development' – is injecting strong momentum into the modernization of the Gansu herbal medicine industry. From the transformative rebirth of Dingxi 'wide noodles', to a fastener supporting major national equipment, to the technological protection of a seed, and the green intelligent manufacturing of a Gansu herb – four enterprises, four distinct sectors, collectively attest to a profound truth: quality is the way to prosper a nation and strengthen its strategy; it is the foundation for building enterprises and the key to transformation. At the start of the '15th Five-Year Plan' period, quality initiatives are becoming a crucial approach for driving high-quality development across the Longyuan land. Throughout their journey, the interview team observed firsthand the robust momentum of 'winning through quality and breaking new ground through innovation' in the Longzhong region. The week-long themed interview continues; reporters will further explore Gansu's industrial frontline, measuring the heights of quality with their steps, writing stories of endeavor with their pens, and comprehensively showcasing the responsibility and achievements of Gansu's people on the journey towards a quality powerhouse.