Some members of the Herbal Manufacturers Association of Ghana have commenced processes to convert liquid mixtures into other modernized medications.

Pharmaceutical grade capsules, tablets and repositories are among the modern forms the medication will take.

This is part of measures to improve efficacy and standardize dosage for consumers.

The move is in response to training in modern means of herbal medicine production received from the Herbal Medicine Department of the KNUST’s School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

President of the Herbal Manufacturers Association of Ghana, Dr. Solomon Appiah Kubi explains the manufacturers have received improved knowledge in plant extraction to improve their produce.

"We are no longer just powdering the plant materials and putting them into shells, we are doing the extraction, granulation so we can do tableting or capsulation," he said.

With this process, dosage of products will be standardized to compete on the international market.

Over the years, most herbal medicines are produced in liquid mixtures.

Though effective, users will have to use the medication over some time before realizing the needed results.

Some herbal medicine manufacturers are envisaging an improvement in the products in the near future.

Dr. Amuzu of Amuzu Herbal Clinic believes, "our medication will be more effective and portable to carry around. It will be kept neat as well. Medication with duration for treatment marked fourteen days will be reduced to three days."

Aside from extraction, herbal materials processing and modernization of the products, the herbal medicine manufacturers were also trained in prevention of microbial and toxic metal contamination.

Dr. Appiah Kubi has emphasized the implementation of the training received forms part of processes to attain International Standard Organisation’s certification for locally-manufactured herbal medicines.

The Herbal Medicine Department of KNUST has committed to furthering training on documentation as part of a roadmap towards meeting ISO certification.

Head of Department, Prof. Isaac Kingsley Amponsah has revealed a lot will be done towards meeting ISO certification.

"ISO has certain requirements they will have to meet. This will require re-engineering of their entire production facility, work flow and more importantly their documentation," he added.

Meanwhile, the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at KNUST has assured to further monitor the herbal medicine sector and design programs to meet their needs.