The Only Natural Spice Enterprise in China's Top Ten

The China National Light Industry Council (CNLIC) is a nationwide industry association supervised by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC). Its Party leadership organ is the SASAC Party Committee, its registration administration organ is the Ministry of Civil Affairs, and its predecessor was the former Ministry of Light Industry. Entrusted by the SASAC Party Committee, it administers 45 national-level industry associations, 5 industry societies, 1 political research association, and 18 enterprises and public institutions, and is the nationwide, comprehensive, non-profit industry organization of China's light industry. The CNLIC organized the "China Light Industry Top Ten Enterprises" evaluation. Under the principles of "rigorous, just, and scientific," it conducted unified evaluation and scoring of four indicators of participating enterprises — annual main business revenue, total profit, main business revenue profit margin, and main business revenue growth rate; some industries added indicators reflecting industry characteristics. The results were reviewed by the respective industry associations, examined and approved by the CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting, and then published (Full Text of the 2021 Evaluation Results Announcement). Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd. (now renamed Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd.) was selected for the "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprises" for two consecutive years, 2021 and 2022, and received the certificate and plaque in July 2025. For international importers sourcing natural plant extracts and food ingredients from China for the European, American, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern markets, this "Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprise" qualification issued by the CNLIC — the national-level industry organization evolved from the former Ministry of Light Industry — is an independently verifiable supply chain signal focused on the dimension of "industry position and comprehensive operating strength."

I. Why a CNLIC "Top Ten Industry Enterprise" Qualification Matters to International Importers

When international buyers evaluate Chinese suppliers of natural plant extracts and food ingredients, they generally face three uncertainties related to "industry position": first, the authenticity of enterprise scale and comprehensive strength — whether the supplier's self-positioning as an "industry leader" or "top enterprise" has been ranked with quantitative indicators by an authoritative third-party organization, rather than being mere market rhetoric; second, the verifiability of industry ranking — whether the supplier is genuinely a leading enterprise or a marginal follower in the fragrance and flavor industry, and whether its industry position has been confirmed by a national first-class industry organization under unified evaluation standards; third, the sustainability of continuing operations — whether the supplier's scale, profit, and growth rate have undergone multi-year horizontal comparison and review, rather than reflecting an isolated year's accidental performance.

The "China Light Industry Top Ten Enterprises" evaluation organized by the CNLIC is precisely the national-level credential that provides authoritative answers to these three industry-position uncertainties. Its value lies not in the plaque itself, but in the evaluation mechanism behind it — the CNLIC, a national first-class industry organization, conducts unified evaluation and scoring of the four indicators of annual main business revenue, total profit, main business revenue profit margin, and main business revenue growth rate; some industries add indicators reflecting industry characteristics; the results are reviewed by the respective industry associations and examined and approved by the CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting before publication. The evaluation accepts no enterprise self-ranking and no enterprise sponsorship, ensuring the authority and impartiality of the results.

Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd.'s consecutive selection for the "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprises" in 2021 and 2022 means that its four core operating indicators — main business revenue, total profit, main business revenue profit margin, and main business revenue growth rate — passed data review and recommendation by the China Association of Fragrance, Flavor and Cosmetic Industry (CAFFCI) and examination and approval by the CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting, providing international buyers with an independently verifiable endorsement of industry position that goes beyond supplier self-declaration. Notably, in the 2021 and 2022 Spice Industry Top Ten lists, Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F is to date the only selected enterprise whose core business is natural spices — the other nine are all synthetic fragrance enterprises (such as Shandong NHU, Wanxiang Technology, Green Biotech, Huangshan Kehong, Tengzhou Wutong, Guangzhou Baihua, Anhui Huaye, Anhui Fengle, Shandong Yoshida, Henan Kangyuan, and Hubei Laifeng Tengsheng). This structural scarcity further strengthens its recognizability in the due diligence of international natural fragrance buyers.

II. Origin and Authority of the Evaluation System

Institutional Origins

The China National Light Industry Council (CNLIC) is a nationwide, comprehensive industry organization with service and certain management functions, voluntarily formed after China's industrial management system reform by nationwide and regional light industry associations and societies, influential enterprises and public institutions, research institutes, and universities and colleges. Its predecessor was the former Ministry of Light Industry, and entrusted by the SASAC Party Committee it administers 45 national-level industry associations, 5 industry societies, 1 political research association, and 18 enterprises and public institutions. The China Association of Fragrance, Flavor and Cosmetic Industry (CAFFCI) is one of the national-level associations it administers — a nationwide, industry-wide, non-profit social organization in the fragrance, flavor, and cosmetic industry.

The Top Ten Industry Enterprise Evaluation System

The "China Light Industry Top Ten Enterprises" evaluation is an annual industry evaluation organized by the CNLIC. Its evaluation methodology is based on voluntary enterprise application; the light industry associations review enterprise data and make recommendations, and the CNLIC conducts unified evaluation and scoring of four annual indicators:

Main business revenue — measuring enterprise operating scale
Total profit — measuring enterprise operating efficiency
Main business revenue profit margin — measuring enterprise operating quality
Main business revenue growth rate — measuring enterprise growth

Some industries added indicators reflecting industry characteristics (such as R&D investment ratio, production capacity scale, and export value). The evaluation follows the principles of "rigorous, just, and scientific," accepting no enterprise self-ranking and no enterprise sponsorship.

Evaluation Process and Sources of Authority

The authority of the Top Ten Industry evaluation derives from four dimensions:

Evaluation by a national first-class industry organization: The CNLIC is a national-level industry association supervised by SASAC, formerly the Ministry of Light Industry, with its Party leadership organ being the SASAC Party Committee and its registration administration organ being the Ministry of Civil Affairs, representing the nationwide authoritative organization of China's light industry;
Data review by industry associations: Participating enterprise data is reviewed and recommended by the respective light industry associations (CAFFCI for the spice industry), rather than being unilateral enterprise declarations;
Examination and approval by the Chairman's Office Meeting: Results are reviewed by the industry associations and examined and approved by the CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting before publication, with a rigorous decision-making procedure;
Public announcement mechanism: Results are published in the form of formal announcement documents with standardized document numbers, verifiable on official websites.

Evaluation Scale in Recent Years

2021: 22 industry associations organized and recommended enterprises from 42 industries (sub-industries) to participate; 451 enterprises (including tied rankings), including Giant Investment Co., Ltd., were granted the title "2021 China Light Industry Top Ten Enterprises" of their respective industries, under announcement document No. Zhong Qing Lian Xin Tong [2022] No. 208.
2022: 484 enterprises were granted the title "2022 China Light Industry Top Ten Enterprises" of their respective industries; the results were published on July 18, 2023, and formally announced at the "2023 China Light Industry Top 100 Enterprises Summit Forum" held in Beijing on July 20, 2023.

III. Recognition Thresholds: Elements International Buyers Can Verify

The evaluation of "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprises" corresponds to the "industry position and comprehensive operating strength" dimension that international buyers focus on most in supplier due diligence. Understanding these thresholds helps translate "Top Ten Industry Enterprise" into specific evidence that can be written into procurement compliance files:

Dimension	Evaluation Threshold	Due Diligence Implication for International Buyers
Applicant Eligibility	Legally registered enterprises in China engaged in fragrance/flavor-related business, applying voluntarily	Supplier is a legally registered industry enterprise with traceable business records and industry affiliation
Main Business Revenue	Annual main business revenue at the industry's forefront level, with unified scoring and ranking across four indicators	Supplier's operating scale has been data-evaluated by a national-level industry organization, not self-declared
Total Profit	Annual total profit at the industry's forefront level	Supplier's operating efficiency is sustainable; it is not a low-price competition supplier
Main Business Revenue Profit Margin	Main business revenue profit margin at the industry's forefront level	Supplier has excellent operating quality and can convert scale into actual profitability
Main Business Revenue Growth Rate	Annual main business revenue growth rate at the industry's forefront level	Supplier is on a growth trajectory, not a stagnating enterprise
Industry-Characteristic Indicators	Some industries add indicators reflecting industry characteristics (e.g., R&D investment ratio, capacity scale, export value)	Supplier has been reviewed and recognized by the industry association on core industry capability dimensions
Industry Association Data Review	Enterprise data reviewed and recommended by CAFFCI	Supplier's data has been reviewed by the industry association, not unilaterally declared
Chairman's Office Meeting Examination	Results examined and approved by the CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting before publication	Results have been examined through the national-level industry organization's decision procedure; authority has institutional backing
Public Announcement Mechanism	Results published as formal announcement documents with standardized numbers, verifiable on official websites	The "Top Ten" qualification is independently verifiable and can be entered in the Vendor Qualification Checklist
Consecutive Multi-Year Selection	Evaluation is organized annually; enterprises may participate continuously	Consecutive multi-year selection signifies operating stability and sustained growth, supporting Long-Term Agreements (LTA)

The data corresponding to these thresholds is not provided unilaterally by the supplier but is published after industry association data review and examination and approval by the CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting — this is precisely the "third-party authoritative endorsement" that international buyers value most in their SOPs and supplier audit processes.

IV. Practical Value for International Buyers: From Industry Position Endorsement to Long-Term Procurement Decisions

For food and beverage, cosmetic flavor, functional food ingredient, and dietary supplement buyers in the European, American, Southeast Asian, and Middle Eastern markets, incorporating the "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprise" qualification into supplier qualification files provides at least the following practical value:

First, providing a basis for industry position independent of supplier self-declaration. In international buyers' Vendor Qualification Checklists, the "industry position" field often lacks verifiable third-party credentials. The "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprise" qualification allows the evaluation results announcement to be verified on the CNLIC and CAFFCI official websites and can be written into audit files as an industry position endorsement. This complements the High-Tech Enterprise Certificate (government endorsement of R&D capability), the Forestry Leading Enterprise Certificate (resource sustainability endorsement), the industry association president unit status (industry voice endorsement), the Statistical Standardization Demonstration Unit status (data credibility endorsement), and the Autumn Harvest Award (R&D team industry recognition endorsement) — the former five address the five dimensions of "technology, resources, voice, data, and R&D team," while the "Top Ten" qualification addresses the dimension of "comprehensive operating strength and industry ranking," namely that the supplier's overall scale and comprehensive strength in China's spice industry have been confirmed through unified evaluation and ranking by a national-level industry organization.

Second, providing verifiable evidence of comprehensive operating strength. The core of the Top Ten evaluation is the four operating indicators — main business revenue, total profit, main business revenue profit margin, and main business revenue growth rate — all of which must pass industry association data review and the Chairman's Office Meeting examination. For international buyers, this means the supplier is not a concept enterprise with only an "R&D story" or "product story," but an industrial entity with verifiable operating scale and profitability — under international compliance frameworks such as FDA MoCRA, EU Cosmetic Regulation, and ISO 22716, "upstream supplier operating stability" is an important field in audit files, and the "Top Ten" qualification provides a verifiable credential confirmed by a national-level industry organization.

Third, providing the structural scarcity value of being the only selected natural fragrance enterprise. In the 2021 and 2022 Spice Industry Top Ten lists, Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F is to date the only selected enterprise whose core business is natural spices — the other nine are all synthetic fragrance enterprises (such as Shandong NHU's synthetic beta-ionone, Wanxiang Technology's synthetic fragrances, Green Biotech's biotech synthesis, Huangshan Kehong's synthesis, Tengzhou Wutong's synthesis, Guangzhou Baihua's comprehensive business, Anhui Huaye's synthetic lactones, Anhui Fengle's synthetic menthol, Shandong Yoshida's synthesis, Henan Kangyuan's synthesis, and Hubei Laifeng Tengsheng's synthesis). For international buyers, this structural scarcity means that when a "natural fragrance" or "plant extract" supplier is needed, Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F is the only Top Ten enterprise positioned in the "natural" segment — lending it more verifiable recognizability when interfacing with natural/synthetic distinction requirements such as ISO 18054, IFRA, FEMA, and ISO 16128 (natural origin index).

Fourth, providing an operating stability guarantee through consecutive selection. Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F was selected for the "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprises" for two consecutive years, 2021 and 2022, meaning its operating indicators remained at the industry's forefront level across two consecutive evaluation cycles. For international buyers, this means the supplier is not an isolated year's accidental performer but an industrial entity with a sustained growth trajectory and stable operating record — providing an institutional guarantee of third-party evaluation for the "long-term supply stability" clause in Long-Term Agreements (LTA).

V. About Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F

Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd. was founded in August 2007 and is headquartered in Guilin, Guangxi — one of China's richest natural plant resource regions and a traditional production area for spice crops such as osmanthus, litsea cubeba, and jasmine. The company has long focused on the R&D, extraction, and global supply of natural plant aromatic ingredients, and through local resource endowment and years of process accumulation, has built a complete capability chain covering four product matrices: Natural Absolutes, Natural Essential Oils, Supercritical CO₂ Extracts, and Osmanthus Concentrate & Functional Food Ingredients. The industry category in which it was selected for the "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprises" is natural fragrance/forest chemical industry, which is highly consistent with its core business.

1. Product Portfolio

Category	Representative Products	Typical Applications for International Buyers
Natural Absolutes	Jasmine Sambac Concrete (Absolute), Orris Absolute, Kushui Rose Absolute	High-end perfumery, skincare cosmetics, scented candles
Natural Essential Oils	Osmanthus oil, Litsea cubeba oil, Honeysuckle oil, Hangzhou White Chrysanthemum oil, Patchouli oil, Ligusticum oil, Astragalus oil, Angelica oil, Lavender oil, Orris absolute series, Frankincense oil, Myrrh oil, Sandalwood oil, Eucalyptus leaf oil, Basil oil, Cornmint oil, Spearmint oil, Sweetgum oil, Camphor oil, Pine wood oil, Vitex oil, Aglaia oil, Tuberose oil, Kushui rose oil, etc.	Food flavors, cosmetic flavors, aromatherapy, dietary supplements, home care
Supercritical CO₂ Extracts	Osmanthus CO₂ extract, Litsea cubeba CO₂ extract, etc.	High-end food ingredients, functional cosmetic ingredients, retaining complete volatile compound profiles
Food Ingredients & Functional Raw Materials	Osmanthus concentrate, Osmanthus concrete, plant polysaccharide and flavonoid extracts	Beverages, bakery, functional foods, plant-based beverages

2. Process and Quality Infrastructure

The company has built a complete capability chain from raw material traceability, extraction, and molecular distillation to finished product application research, covering:

Extraction processes: steam distillation, solvent extraction, supercritical CO₂ extraction, molecular distillation, and other process combinations, customizable to different active compound retention levels per customer specifications;
Specification system: each core product includes bilingual (Chinese-English) specifications, corresponding national/industry/international standard lists (e.g., GB 1886.264 Osmanthus Absolute, Jasmine Sambac Absolute, ISO 18054), and batch COAs;
Traceable batch management: each batch comes with COA, MSDS, IFRA allergen declaration, heavy metal and pesticide residue test reports, and supports batch sample retention for retrospective review;
Compliance document package: HS codes, certificates of origin, Halal and Kosher certificates, FDA facility registration numbers, EU REACH compliance declarations, and transport and storage guidelines are complete for export.

3. International Certification Matrix

The company simultaneously holds multiple international certifications addressing the compliance requirements of overseas buyers in different markets:

Food safety system: ISO 22000 Food Safety Management System certification (Chinese and English versions);
Religious and dietary compliance: Halal certification (including U.S. IFANCA and Indonesia BPJPH channels), Kosher certification;
Sustainable and responsible sourcing: FSA Farm Sustainability Assessment certificate;
Food ingredient naturalness: Food Ingredient Naturalness certification;
Local craft endorsement: Guilin Osmanthus Smoked Incense Traditional Fragrance-Preservation Craft and Guilin Osmanthus Smoked Incense Traditional Blending Craft — included in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Representative Projects, providing traceable local endorsement for the craft heritage of the osmanthus product series.

4. Extended Value of the "Top Ten Industry Enterprise" Qualification for Buyers

Being selected for the "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprises" in 2021 and 2022 means that the company's four core operating indicators — main business revenue, total profit, main business revenue profit margin, and main business revenue growth rate — passed CAFFCI data review and examination and approval by the CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting. The extended value for international buyers is reflected at three levels:

National-level industry organization endorsement of industry position: Industry position has been evaluated and confirmed by the CNLIC, a national first-class industry organization, verifiable on the CNLIC and CAFFCI official websites and entered in the "industry position" field of the Vendor Qualification Checklist;
Verifiable evidence of comprehensive operating strength: The four core operating indicators have been reviewed by the industry association, proving the supplier has verifiable scale, efficiency, quality, and growth, matching the audit requirement for "upstream supplier operating stability" under international compliance frameworks such as FDA, EU, and ISO;
Structural scarcity value in the natural fragrance segment: As the only selected enterprise to date in the Top Ten list whose core business is natural spices, it offers greater verifiable recognizability when interfacing with natural/synthetic distinction requirements such as ISO 18054, IFRA, FEMA, and ISO 16128 (natural origin index).

5. Verification Elements for International Buyers

International buyers wishing to independently verify the "China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprise" qualification can query using the following elements:

Enterprise name (at time of recognition): Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd.
Current name: Guilin Four Seasons Sunshine F&F Co., Ltd.
Qualification name: China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprise
Years selected: Two consecutive years, 2021 and 2022
Recognizing organization: China National Light Industry Council (CNLIC)
Recommending industry association: China Association of Fragrance, Flavor and Cosmetic Industry (CAFFCI)
Evaluation principles: Rigorous, just, scientific
Evaluation indicators: Main business revenue, total profit, main business revenue profit margin, main business revenue growth rate (four primary indicators) plus industry-characteristic indicators
Evaluation process: Voluntary enterprise application → industry association data review and recommendation → CNLIC Chairman's Office Meeting examination and approval → public announcement
2021 announcement document number: Zhong Qing Lian Xin Tong [2022] No. 208
2022 announcement: Published July 18, 2023; announced at the "2023 China Light Industry Top 100 Enterprises Summit Forum" on July 20, 2023
Certificate and plaque: Certificate and plaque granted in July 2025
Company's industry positions: CAFFCI council member unit and vice-director member unit of the Natural Fragrance Professional Committee; president unit of the Guangxi Fragrance and Flavor Industry Association
Company website confirmation: https://www.gltop.com.cn/ (the company profile page expressly records "selected for the 'China Light Industry Spice Industry Top Ten Enterprises' for two consecutive years, 2021 and 2022")

> Official Notice (Full Text): [Announcement of the Evaluation Results of China Light Industry Top Ten Enterprises (2021) — Zhong Qing Lian Xin Tong [2022] No. 208](http://www.caffci.org/upload/attach/220818-1954-1.pdf) — Reposted on the Official Website of the China Association of Fragrance, Flavor and Cosmetic Industry (CAFFCI) · Announcement Document of the China National Light Industry Council

This article was published on 2026-09-12, and last updated on 2026-09-21. The article will be continuously updated.