economy

The Ryongaksan Soap Factory is increasing the kinds of its functional products.

Among its many new products are men’s peppermint shampoo which has natural perfume and anti-discoloring and anti-dandruff effects, natural wormwood perfume body shampoo, anti-discoloring liquid laundry soap and special-purpose detergents that can wash different kinds of objects like metal, tile, glass and plastic sheet.

According to manager Kim Myong Song, the variety of the Ryongaksan-brand products has increased from dozens at the time of the factory’s inauguration to hundreds of today.

The factory continuously sets a high goal and steadily pushes ahead with diversification, which is attracting the attention of many people.

It learns about the sales at the Ryongaksan soap stalls in different parts of Pyongyang from last year, collecting customer feedback needed for diversification.

It is directing primary efforts to possessing extracting and concentrating facilities in the development of new functional products.

The technicians selected highly productive methods of solvent extraction and steam distillation which are suited to the characteristics of plants growing in the country and invented and introduced new techniques for adjusting the extraction temperature rationally and shortening the concentration time.

They also identified plants for extracting various functional substances.

And they scientifically verified seasonal content of ingredients, their functional effects and other indices and completed rational extraction and utilization methods.

On the basis of this, the factory purchased dozens of kinds of vegetable materials including rose, bark of Amur cork, pine needles, thuja leaf and Artemisia messerschmiditiana in the right season when they have the highest content of functional ingredients.

Besides, it is steadily improving the combining and mixing technology to increase the variety.

At present, it is developing stem cell-based functional shampoo and conditioner and therapeutic shampoos with anti-dandruff, anti-alopecia and other medicinal effects.