Glycyrrhetinic acid (glycyrrhetinic acid) is widely used in the fields of medicine and daily chemicals, and the market size will continue to grow.

Glycyrrhetinic acid, also known as glycyrrhetinic acid, is a derivative of glycyrrhizic acid. It appears as a white to off-white powder, insoluble in water, and easily soluble in ethanol, chloroform, pyridine, and acetic acid. Glycyrrhetinic acid is one of the main active ingredients of licorice, which belongs to the legume family. my country is a major producer and exporter of licorice. Licorice resources are mainly distributed in Shandong, Gansu, Xinjiang, Qinghai, Shaanxi and other regions.

Glycyrrhetinic acid has various biological activities such as anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, anti-allergic, anti-viral, liver protection and blood lipid lowering, and is widely used in medicine, daily chemicals and other fields. In the field of medicine, as an immunomodulator, glycyrrhetinic acid has great potential in the treatment of inflammation, hepatitis, cancer and other diseases; in the field of daily chemicals, as a high-end daily chemical raw material, glycyrrhetinic acid has whitening, moisturizing, anti-aging, and antioxidant properties. It is widely used in cosmetics and skin care products.

According to the “2023-2027 China Glycyrrhetinic Acid (Glycyrrhetinic Acid) Industry Market Supply and Demand Status and Development Trend Forecast Report” shows that it is expected that the global glycyrrhetinic acid market will grow at an average annual compound growth rate of about 4.8% from 2023 to 2027. Globally, the glycyrrhetinic acid market is mainly distributed in Asia-Pacific, North America and Europe. my country is one of the largest producers and consumers of glycyrrhetinic acid in the world. Relevant suppliers include Wuhan Zeshan Biotech, Nantong Runfeng Petrochemical, Shaanxi Jinkangtai Biotech, etc.

Glycyrrhetinic acid is a powerful ingredient with rapid growth in application in recent years. Currently, there are dozens of products using this ingredient, including well-known brands such as Estee Lauder, Clinique, Bobbi Brown, and Bioderma. Glycyrrhetinic acid is risk-free and highly safe, with a demand of about 250 tons/year. As residents’ requirements for the safety and efficacy of drugs and daily chemical products increase, the demand for glycyrrhetinic acid applications will be further released.

Glycyrrhetinic acid can be obtained by direct extraction of licorice, or by acidification cleavage, alkaline cleavage and chemical synthesis of glycyrrhizic acid or its salts. However, the above processes all have shortcomings such as high energy consumption, large waste emissions, violent reaction conditions, and environmental pollution. Against the backdrop of increasingly stringent environmental protection supervision, the glycyrrhetinic acid production process is in urgent need of optimization and upgrading.

Beijing Institute of Technology has developed a production and separation and purification process for the enzymatic preparation of glycyrrhetinic acid. Compared with traditional processes, it has the advantages of high yield, mild reaction conditions, high purity, and low waste emissions. At present, this process has been completed in the ton-level The construction and verification of the pilot production line enabled small batch production.

Industry analysts said that glycyrrhetinic acid is highly safe and widely used in the fields of medicine and daily chemicals. As consumers pay more attention to the ingredients , attention to formulas continues to increase, the application demand for glycyrrhetinic acid will be further released, and the industry has broad prospects for development. The existing production process of glycyrrhetinic acid is relatively complex, but with the advancement of science and technology, the production process of glycyrrhetinic acid is constantly being optimized and improved. In the future, the industry will transform towards high efficiency, high quality and environmental protection.