The Biochemical Society and Portland Press have a strong history in recent years of fostering collaborative initiatives in China. In September 2007, a delegation comprising Professor George Banting (the then outgoing Chair of the Biochemical Journal Editorial Board), Professor Peter Shepherd (the then incoming Chair) and key staff visited institutions in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Hong Kong to raise awareness of the Society and its publishing portfolio in China. The relationships established during this initial trip were further strengthened over the following 2 years and subsequently led, in May 2011, to the opening of an Editorial Office for the Biochemical Journal at the prestigious Institute of Biophysics (IBP), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in Beijing under the direction of Professor Tao Xu, Vice Chair Asia-Pacific [see The Biochemist volume 33, no. 5 (October 2011), pp. 30–35].

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It is a pity that there is not the equivalent of a telegram from the Queen for journals celebrating their 100th birthday, because otherwise the Biochemical Journal, surely the Grande Dame (but whether Evadne Hinge or Hilda Bracket is matter of personal choice) of biochemistry journals, would be getting one this year (and, yes, in case you are wondering, the Biochemical Journal, like a majestic ocean liner, is definitely a ‘she’).

In September 2007, a Biochemical Society delegation comprising Professor George Banting (then the Chair of the Biochemical Journal Editorial Board), Professor Peter Shepherd (then the incoming Chair of the Biochemical Journal Editorial Board) and senior Biochemical Society staff visited institutions in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Hong Kong to raise awareness of the Society and its publishing portfolio in China [see The Biochemist, Vol. 29 (December), pp. 24–28]. The relationships established on this trip were further strengthened at the 21st IUBMB and 12th FAOBMB Meeting in Shanghai in August 2009, where a Biochemical Society/Portland Press stand to promote our membership and publishing activities attracted interest from many delegates. These initial steps into China have now reaped rewards with two major initiatives coming to fruition this year.