ISHS Acta Horticulturae 676: III WOCMAP Congress on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants - Volume 2: Conservation, Cultivation and Sustainable Use of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants
SUSTAINING THE HARVEST: CHALLENGES IN MAP PRODUCTION AND MARKETS |
| Authors: | L.E. Craker, Z. Gardner |
| Keywords: | aromatic plants, economics, medicinal plants, standardization, sustainability, sustainable use |
| Abstract:
Renewed interest in medicinal and aromatic plants during the past 20 years has brought surging markets and production opportunities for these plant species. To enhance and maintain market growth, however, MAP production systems, whether cultivated or collected, will need to ensure sustainable production of quality plant materials that have been wholesomely grown and processed. The growing familiarity of western consumers with medicinal and aromatic plants places a premium on standardized plant materials that are organically produced and meet expectations for efficacy. Currently, market demand for MAP is nurtured by consumer demographics and by favorable impressions of bioactivity, but this demand remains susceptible to myths, traditions, and science reports associated with the plant materials. By addressing the problems of standardization and verifiable marker compounds along with issues such as plant domestication, conservation, biotechnology, and others that affect plant cultivation, producers and processors can assure acceptable products reach the marketplace and crop production opportunities will continue to grow. | |
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