International Journal of Horticulture, 2026, Vol.16, No.1, 1-14 http://hortherbpublisher.com/index.php/ijh 9 these texts therefore shifts from persuasion to cultural stewardship. Translators are expected to preserve key terms, provide annotation when necessary, and explain the multifaceted roles of shenrong in rituals, customs, and social relationships with cross-cultural sensitivity (Hasan, 2024; Ramadilla et al., 2024). Ethical discussions about shenrong translation that disregard these differences among text types and apply uniform standards risk impracticality and may create new misunderstandings. Table 1 Comparison of ethical priorities across different text types in the translation of ginseng and deer antler-related content Text type Primary communicative purpose Key audience Major legal/regulatory constraints Ethical priorities Recommended translation strategies Commercial advertising Persuasion; brand positioning Global consumers; health-product buyers Health-claim regulations (FDA, EFSA); truth-in-advertising rules Avoid misleading claims; ensure transparency Moderate simplification + clear hedging terms; avoid medicalized claims Product packaging Product identification; mandatory information disclosure Consumers; regulatory authorities Labeling standards; ingredient disclosure; origin rules Accuracy; prevent cultural misinterpretation Standardized terminology; weakened claims; dual-track wording (function + cultural note) E-commerce product pages Dense information display; trust-building Cross-border consumers; platform regulators Platform-specific ad rules; prohibition of disease claims Avoid misleading visuals/text; prevent over-symbolization Segmented “function vs. culture” structure; include disclaimers; provide origin/traceability notes Exhibition Interpretation Cultural education; contextual explanation Museum visitors; cultural audiences Clarity standards; institutional language norms Maintain cultural depth; avoid stereotyping Retain key terms + explanatory notes; provide historical/cultural background Museum/historic al documentation Cultural preservation; knowledge systematization Scholars; cultural institutions Documentation standards; heritage-preservation norms Protect terminology system; high precision Preserve terms (transliteration + notes); maintain theoretical framework Science Communication / Policy texts Public education; policy clarity; normative communication General public; regulators; policymakers Scientific evidence requirements; policy language standards Prevent pseudo-scientization; emphasize clarity Scientific language dominant; culturally sensitive explanations of TCM concepts 5.3 Conflicts between chesterman’s ethics of commitment and Pym’s ethics of cooperation Ethical challenges in translating shenrong culture can also be interpreted through tensions within translation ethics theory itself, most notably the conflict between Chesterman’s ethics of commitment (or representation) and Pym’s ethics of cooperation. Chesterman’s framework stresses the translator’s responsibility to faithfully represent the source text and culture, maintaining the integrity of meaning, style, and cultural values while avoiding distortive rewritings that dilute structural or cultural depth (Hasan, 2024; Hu, 2024). For culturally dense shenrong texts, this approach helps preserve TCM philosophy and traditional knowledge, preventing shenrong from being reduced to a shallow functional commodity image. However, excessive insistence on “strong representation” may result in translations that are too culturally dense and cognitively inaccessible for general health consumers or non-specialist audiences, thereby limiting communicative reach and effectiveness (Ramadilla et al., 2024). By contrast, Pym’s ethics of cooperation emphasizes the translator’s role as a facilitator of intercultural communication, prioritizing target audience comprehension and interaction. This approach encourages flexible adaptation and rewriting when needed to reduce misunderstanding and communicative barriers (Hasan, 2024;
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