ROLE OF ORGANIC CULTIVATION IN MEDICINAL PLANTS

The medicinal plants are necessarily to be cultivated organically and there is no other option. The medicinal plants were collected so far from the forest where there was no cultural intervention and plants have grown luxuriously in nature. Such wild gathering phase was over by now and many of the commercially important herbs are to be grown under cultivation owing to its increasing demand. E. Senna, Gloriosa, Coleus forskohlii

and Aswagandh.

'

Bio inputs in organic production and other versions of organic farming Bio manures

Bio manures though contain less quantity of essential nutrients, they help to build the capacity of the soil to generate its own nutrients. They help to enrich the humus, sustain microflora, accelerates soil dynamics. They help the plants to become sturdier and tolerant to pests and diseases. Farm yard manure is a universally accepted bio manure while goat manure is supposed to be superior but its availability is limited. The poultry manure is available in bulk but should be used after an year of complete degradation. Poultry manure is suggested to crops which requires irrigation once in five days. Organic cakes viz., neem, castor, groundnut, pungam etc., enriched form of organics which are to be applied in lesser quantities. Press mud is composted and now made available as manure but cost is prohibitive. Vermicompost is most sought after item and can be produced within the farm. It is best suited for hi value medicinal plants. Vermi wash and casting are enriched form of vermicompost.

Bio fertilizers

Many of the fungi and bacteria are useful to upgrade the soil quality and helps for maximum root ramification and absorption of elements by plants VAM (Vascular Arbiscular Mycorhizae) phosphobacteria, rhizobial cultures, azospirillum, blue green algae and azolla are few bio inputs which are largely in use whether organic cultivation is practiced or otherwise.

Bio control agents

Herbal pesticides are made out of plant extracts. The plants which are nonbrowsable by animals are best source of herbal pesticides. The leaf or whole plant water or urine extracts acts as a pesticide. Calatropis, Prosopis, Aloe, Clerodendran, Vitex, Neem are few examples. The composition and quantity may vary for each kind of pest and disease. Further, some of the fungi (Trichoderma viride and Pseudomonas fluorescence, Pseudomonas harziarum) can act against many of the harmful fungi and bacteria and safeguard the soil environment.

Bio promoters

Panchakavya, a product combination of cows dung, urine, curd, milk and ghee acts as a growth promoter as well as immunity booster. It has its roofs in vriksayurveda and now made applicable to plants, animals and human as a remedy to many of the ailments. Cow's urine is patented by CSIR in US patent office for its efficacy to enhance the potency of antibiotics. Manchurian tea decoction and moringa leaf extract also possess the same efficacy as that of panchakavya.

Other versions of organic farming

Bio dynamic farming

Organic farming system when extrapolated with plants and stars became biodynamic farming. Moon and Saturn are taken into account as moon influence the water (90% of plants and human consists of water only) and Saturn governs the agriculture. The crop operations which are (-) ve in nature like, cutting, pruning, harvesting, etc can be done during the waning phase of moon, while the crop operations which are (+) in nature viz., planting or sowing, application of manures etc can be performed. There is an agricultural almanac developed for this purpose taking into account the stellar movements.

Agnihotra

System advocates inclusion of sound waves in a particular frequency through mantras which they said purify the environment and ensures cosmic flow on the field for better 'expression of crops.

The essential feature of organic cultivation is that the farming should be made viable without any extra input from outside. The farm waste, farm animal waste are to be recycled in such a way that the crops enjoy all the comfort from soil and atmospheric environment and derive nourishment continuously over years from the revitalized soil and atmosphere.

Organic Certification

Organic certification - An introduction

As the public becomes increasingly concerned about the negative effects of industrial and high input intensive agriculture on the environment and on their health, the demand for safe food is increasing day by day. In this context, Organic horticulture offers a bright light in the troubled future of farming community by providing an economically and environmentally healthy alternative for their survival. Now organic horticulture is experiencing rapid worldwide growth through the creative energy of thousands of grassroots organizations, farmers and traders.

The historical data on organic farming indicated that, it was started in 1924 with a biodynamic concept and the pioneers gave' different names. The global development of organic farming is reflected by International Federation for Organic Agriculture Movemessnt (IFOAM), during 1972 and it now cross with a membership of more than 200 organizations from 130 countries. Austria is the absolute organic boom country having more than 10% of the agricultural area under organic farming. Switzerland accounts for 14% area and Denmark for 35%. There is a very good awareness among the peoples of developed countries and now all are in the way to shift from inorganic to organic farming practices.

Organic certification for medicinal plants

The reports on organic agriculture showed that, most of the farming communities from the developed countries have already switched over to organic farming system and now having organic produces of many crops and allied activities. Now the organic growers were in the stage of selling their products with premium prices through some measures. In this context, organic certification becomes an important inevitable step to be implemented to sell their products in the domestic or in global market.

Organic certification in Horticulture especially in medicinal plants provides transparency in certification and improves the images of organic agriculture. The organic certification by any agency includes the following programmes:

i) Certification -Carried out by the certification Manager

ii) Inspection- Done by inspection manager well trained in organic

standards

iii) Adopting standards - Carried out by the quality control manager

The certification programs vary with country or regions and the certification label is very particular to the country. All the standard used in certification was developed early by IFOAM and is reviewed every two years by the General Assembly of IFOAM. IFOAM has established an accreditation programme for supervising the international trade of organic products.

Various Organic standards

The standards are indicated as directions of sustainability and should be looked upon at global level. The standards acknowledge measure of comparison of or qualitative or quantitative value for degree or level of requirement of excellence or attainments and rules of production.

The organic standards were defined as minimum production practices and requirements, which must be followed strictly if the agricultural products to be labeled as organic. The standards may be of

1. Global standards i. Mandatory Standards

ii. Voluntary standards

2. Regional standards

3. National standards

4. Certification standards

MARKETING OF FLOWERS AND MEDICINAL PLANTS

MARKETING OF FLOWERS

Cultivation of cut flowers is quite popular in about 145 countries as there is a large global market, which is as big as US $35 billion in terms of consumption and over US$ 4 billion in terms of international trade. This includes $ 2.7 billion for cut flowers and $ 1.2 billion for pot plants. The growth in demand is estimated at around 15%.

The demand of flowers is continuously growing in the world. According to the figures of 1999 total world trade in flowers was around $30 billion. In Western countries S 18 billion worth of flowers are sold every year. In USA flower trade is more than $11 billion worth.

Major Importers

Major importers of flowers are Germany, France and Holland. 81 per cent of flower consumption is in these countries.

Major importers and their share of world trade

Country Share

Netherlands 59%

Columbia 10%

Italy 6%

Israel 4%

Kenya 1%

Others 20%

Major Exporters

Spain, Denmark and Belgium are considered to be front ranking floriculture countries next to the Netherlands in the European Community. Outside EC, the other important countries producing/exporting cut flowers are Costa Rica, Thailand, Zimbabwe and Turkey. India's exports are mainly to the Netherlands, Middle East and Far East countries. Going through Dutch auctions will help India to get product acceptance and quality approval. However, the major markets are very quality conscious and have tough quarantine rules.

India is also exporting RS.750 million worth of cut flowers annually to Japan, Singapore and European countries. The government was very helpful and providing facilities to the cut flower exporters. Production of cut flowers in India has increased to about 34,000 acres of land. South India's share is the highest, the government has given' incentives like: Joint venture facilities for the agriculturist who wants to grow cut flowers in green houses; foreign collaboration was allowed with the companies which are specialists in the production of cut flowers and were ready to buy-back the production; seed, flowers, germplasm and tissue culture facility were exempted from custom duty for the agriculturist; air freight subsidy was given to these exporters; where ever these types of companies exists a Floriculture Development Centre was formed to teach them latest techniques and short courses either on nominal rates or free of cost.

Domestic Market

India's domestic market has a great potential compared with other flower producing and exporting countries such as Kenya, Israel, Ecuador, etc: Indian people like flowers and by creating new markets and the surrounding infrastructure, consumers will have better access to quality flowers. It is therefore very likely that the markets and the whole flower industry will be successful. Of course the development will take some time. As the main floriculture nation, the Netherlands has proved that a strong domestic market has been the springboard for exports. As the recent development of the domestic market shows, India could become one of the world's largest markets for floriculture products. This advantage is unique and precious to Indian floriculture and Government has recognized this in promoting and developing regional flower auctions. If producers in India are encouraged to supply and develop the growing domestic market, this will provide a safety-net and base cash flow, an outlet for non-export quality; encourage producers to be more rigorous on export grading and more willing to accept enforced quality controls.

It can serve as a test area for products and prices.

It gives quality feedback.

It can serve as a back up market to exports.

Development of Domestic market

The first step will be the development of the domestic market by the setting up of new auction markets. In the second stage these, new markets will be used to improve exports. The new auction markets should provide them with transport, handling, grading,

etc and guarantee payment. .

Foreign Markets

Largely, floriculture industry remains a labour oriented industry and as a result the production facilities are moving out of affluent countries to developing and underdeveloped countries. Kenya's production capacity has grown multi fold in recent years from 350 hectares to 2000 hectares. New production facilities are emerging significantly in Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, etc. The foreign markets continue to offer remunerative prices. For India, European & Japanese markets are lucrative from September to March, while the markets like Australia are good from July to October. The peripheral markets like Middle and Far East are good round the year. The markets CIS are quite good from March till July, but it is difficult to capture these markets. The global imports have been increasing consistently and India stands a good chance to improve its share from 0.04% to a respectable level.

Market structure and distribution

There are three distinct types of market in Europe. The traditional wholesale system where goods are received by importers and distributed to the primary and secondary and terminal markets where the buyers are mainly retail florists the unique Dutch Auction system where goods are received prepared and auctioned on a daily basis to registered buyers who in turn sell on to exporters who repack and distribute world wide direct sales from growers or importers to specialist operators who pre-pack, bunch and service the non traditional florists such as the supermarkets.

Marketing Solution

Consideration must be given to group(s) of producers who should be encouraged to export. The low and mid-tech producers don't have any means of their own to offer their produce to the export market. Large growers and exporters should also be backed by small and medium growers. The most obvious solution is the creation by the auction markets of a national FLOWER EXPORT CORPORATION (FEC) that actively takes care of the worldwide marketing of Indian Flowers.

Governmental Vision and Support

Government of India is determined to establish a flourishing export oriented floricultural industry. The efforts already made in various parts of the country in this regard. Six AEZs have been declared and EXIM policy has been reframed to suit the needs of export oriented agricultural activities. Flower exports in India have grown by 300% over the last 4 years and while this is a minuscule amount of total world trade, the Indian share of this market is expected to rise dramatically with APEDA fixing a target of a Rs.100 Crore for exports of cut flowers within the next 3 years. National Horticulture Mission is expected to be commissioned during the current plan with a whopping 18000 crore budget.

MARKETING OF MEDICINAL PLANTS

Medicinal plants are the cornerstones of both human and veterinary medical systems worldwide. In developing countries, where traditional medical systems prevail, the majority of people depend on medicinal plants to meet daily health needs.

The increase in market led demand for medicinal plant products which are based on natural materials and which are produced without harmful chemicals or pesticides has been increasing rapidly in many countries as consumers become increasingly health-conscious, and the search for cures for many major health problems continues.

The world trade of medicinal plants is increasing at the rate of 7 % per annum and also India's trade of medicinal plants is in an increasing trend. This market led demand and the importance of medicinal plants in international trade necessitate to analyze international trade on medicinal plants and potential and opportunities of India in world trade of medicinal plants.

Demand for Medicinal Plants

In the US and Europe, the medicinal plants trade has typically been growing at an average of 10 percent per annum Among this vegetable medicaments have a30% market share. According to Nutrition Business Journal, global sales for herbs/botanicals accounted for 18.5 billion of sales in 2000. The major market is Europe, accounting for some 38 percent of the world market. The leading European market is Germany, accounting for over 42 percent of the European market, followed by France (25%), Italy (9%) and the UK (8%). The medicinal plant trade is largely conducted through Germany. Most importers are found in Germany and it is the leading market for exporters in developing countries. The large European markets (Germany and France) are consolidating, while smaller markets show stronger growth. New markets at a global level include Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, India, China and Indonesia.

The international market of medicinal plants is over 60 billion US dollar per year, which is growing at the rate of 7 percent per annum. The top selling medicinal plants presented in Table 1.

Table 1. Top selling medicinal plants in Europe

Product million

Gingko(Ginkgo biloha) 338

Valerian( Valerian a officinalis 169

Horse Chestnut(Aeschulus hippocastanum) 141

Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) 130

Bitter Orange Extract (Citrus aurantium) 124

Garlic (Allium sativum) 113

Haw Thorn (Crategus oxyacantha) 79

Ginseng (Panax quinquifolium) 79

Psyllium -(Psyllium species) 71

Echinacea (Echinacea purpurea) 68

Butcher Broom (Ruscus aculeatus) 68

Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis) 621

Pygeum (Pygeum a{ricanum) 59

(Source M.K. Eaves, 1998 in Commonwealth (2000)

The assessments of international trade in medicinal plants include plants and their parts like roots, tubers, wood extract, bark, leaves, flowers, fruit and seeds indicated that China tops the list of exporting countries followed by India, Hong Kong, Japan, Gern1any and USA. Market survey results also confirm that this trade will increase geometric progression. The herbal cosmetic industry playing a major role in fuelling the above said demand for herbals.

World Export

Markets for herbal medicines in developed countries are highly regulated and very difficult to penetrate, particularly for developing countries whose materials have not undergone the stringent tests required by developed country pharmaceutical Industries. Therefore developing countries tend to export unprocessed or slightly processed materials to developed countries. In the case of India, around 80 percent is export of raw materials including dried plants, extracts and isolated ingredients. The export of finished medicinal products, mostly homoeopathic and ayurvedic medicines, accounts for the remaining 20 percent.

The world export value of medicinal plants is presented in Fig 1. During last decade (1991-2002), the world's average export is 1227.6 million US $ and in this the developed countries have exported value of 421.4 million US $ (34.3 %) and the developing countries have 806.2 million dollar (65.7 %) . Among developing countries, India has exported 61.4 million US $ (7.6 %).

World Import

The main importing (by value) countries are China, Hong Kong, US, Japan and Germany. Germany is the leading importer within Europe because its pharmaceutical companies are major players in the world market. The market for herbal products is very diverse throughout the world, with each region or each country having its own prerequisites for bringing those products on the market.

The import value of medicinal plants is presented in Fig 2. During last decade (1991-2002), the world's average import is 1252.4 million US $ and in this the developed countries have imported value of 669.8 million US $ (53.5%) and the developing countries have 582.7 million dollar (46.5). Among developing countries, India has imported 4.1 million US $ (0.7 %)

Table 2.Leading Suppliers of Medicinal plants to Selected Countries

S.NoImporting CountriesSuppliers

1. GermanyPoland (13%), USA (9%), Egypt (7%), China (7%), Bulgaria (6%), Chile (6%), France (5%), South Africa (4%)

2. FranceSpain (13%), Germany(l2%) Morocco(11 %), China (7%), Belgium (6%), Italy (6%), The Netherlands (4%), India (4%)

3. United KingdomUSA (28%), Germany (14%), France (10%), China (8%), Belgium (8%), India (5%), Israel (5%), Cyprus (4%)

4. Spain Germany (20%), The Netherlands (11 %), India (11 %), Bulgaria (9%), France (8%), USA (6%), Morocco (4%)

5. ItalyChina (17%), USA (15%), France (14%), Austria (8%), Germany (7%), India (4%), Croatia (3%), Albania (2%)

6. The NetherlandKenya (32%), Israel (20%), South Africa (9%), Belgium(8%),Germany (7%), Nigeria (4%), USA (2%), India (2%)

7. PolandSudan(22%) , Germany (20%), China (9%), India (6%), Nigeria (5%), Egypt (5%), Chile (4%), Turkey (4%)

Marketing channel for medicinal plants

Generally, the plant material is bought from collectors and cultivators by various types of traders, including local dealers, village cooperatives and district traders. It is then passed on to wholesalers, manufacturers or directly to retailers. This makes it very difficult to identify sources of materials. Also, those at the start of the value chain have limited access to information on value addition throughout the value chain and the actual value of their product. The marketing channel for the medicinal and aromatic plants for world market is presented below.

MARKETING CHANNEL FOR THE MEDICINAL PLANTS

Cultivation or wild collection of plants

Retail / consumer sales

Distributors

Manufacturers of finished products

Exporters / importers / wholesalers / brokers/ traders

Bulk ingredient suppliers and processing companies