[MPWG] NTFP trade in Scotland

[Jean Giblette]

Dr Emery conjures up a benign picture of nature-lovers out for a  
Sunday stroll, plucking and cherishing their little nature token.   
While this picture no doubt accurately describes some of the wild- 
gatherers, it misses the main point.

Global trade in medicinal plants (and perhaps other NTFPs) relies on  
paying people very low wages for goods extracted from nature.  This  
happens worldwide but also right here in eastern North America,  
exacerbated by increasing poverty.  (For those of you with good  
government jobs -- hello -- yes, more of us are forced to scramble  
frantically for cash these days.)

Meanwhile, production costs for those of us trying to wild or  
ecologically cultivate medicinals on owned or leased properties are  
something like ten times the going rate for extracted goods.  This  
wage gap is thoroughly documented here:

Burkhart, Eric P. and Michael G. Jacobson, 2008. “Transitioning from  
wild collection to forest cultivation of indigenous medicinal forest  
plants in eastern North America is constrained by lack of  
profitability,” Agroforestry Systems Journal (Springer Science 
+Business Media).

I'm losing patience with the tactic of begging the Forest Service to  
acknowledge value in natural resources, all the while handsome trade  
profits are being made on the backs of rural people for whom an extra  
$1000 means avoiding the repo man.  The only solution I can figure  
out is along the lines of the "local food" strategy.  That is,  
getting the message out to the general public:  if you don't know  
exactly where your medicinal plants come from -- the entire value  
chain, from site or farm, grower, herbalist or product maker --  
they're probably stolen from your children.

Also, we need to go way beyond Fair Trade to price parity.  Growers/ 
wild-cultivators need to organize, support each other, get certified  
to the max, and watch out for our own interests.

Jean

On Apr 22, 2009, at 10:08 AM, Marla Emery wrote:

>
> Hello Patricia and all,
>
> Thanks for sharing the article on NTFP trade in Scotland.  I must  
> say, having done research on NTFPs in Scotland, I'm going to have  
> to check the sources and reliability of the information reported in  
> the article.
>
> Re. NTFP values in the United States, so often nonmarket  
> activities, which constitute the majority of gatherers -- if not of  
> biomass -- are ignored.  These include creating and reinforcing  
> direct, intimate connections between nature and humans (there's  
> nothing more intimate than putting something into your mouth and  
> literally having it become a part of your body).  Because foraging  
> requires careful attention to ecological characteristics such as  
> weather, habitat, and phenology, especially when engaged in over  
> time, it leads to a kind of awareness that can be a strong basis  
> for ecologically motivated behavior and attachment to place.   
> Foraging can also promote human health by promoting exercise and  
> access to fresh food, often with high nutritional value.   
> Interestingly, the latter point was brought home to me most  
> strongly by my research in Scotland.
>
> All of this is not to say that there are not significant social and  
> ecological issues raised by large-scale commercialization of NTFPs,  
> such as the terms of compensation for landowners.  But I do think  
> it is important for those of us who work in this field to remember  
> that the vast majority of people who go out to gather nontimber  
> forest products do so for use by themselves and their immediate  
> social networks. That activity contributes to development of the  
> kinds of knowledge and attitudes that are recognized as  
> foundational to support for conservation -- provided we do not  
> alienate people by demonizing their activities.
>
> Cheers,
> Marla
>
> Marla R. Emery, Ph.D.
> Research Geographer
> US Forest Service
> Northern Research Station
> 705 Spear Street
> Burlington, VT  05403-6102
> (802)951-6771 ext. 1060
> http://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/people/memery
>
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Jean Giblette, Director
HIGH FALLS GARDENS
Box 125 Philmont NY 12565
518-672-7365, hfg at capital.net
www.highfallsgardens.net



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