Arid marketing problems of medicinal plants A Presentation By Mr Allah Dad khan Former Director General Agriculture Extension KPK Province and Visiting Professor the University of Agriculture Peshawar

2. Marketing Problems of AridZone Medicinal Plants in
Pakistan
A
Presentation By
Mr. Allah Dad Khan On 19 th August 2016
At Pakistan Forest Institute
Peshawar

3. What is MarketingSome definitions
1.Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for
creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that
have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.
2. Marketing is the social process by which individuals and
organizations obtain what they need and want through creating and
exchanging value with others.
3. The all-embracing function that links the business with customer
needs and wants in order to get the right product to the right place
at the right time”
4. Marketing may be defined as a set of human activities directed at
facilitating and consummating exchanges”

4. Situation of marketing of herbal Medicines
The market for herbal medicines in the developed countries is growing at a
faster rate than other pharmaceutical products. Some of the reasons are :
(i) The realization that Allopathic drugs have harmful side effects.
(ii) Most of the present day ailments are life style diseases.
(iii) Allopathic medicine are ineffective against many chronic diseases
like cancer.
(iv) Moreover, many people suffering from diabetes, arthritis, respiratory
diseases, skin ailments, gastric problems, jaundice are turning more
and more to Ayurveda and Yunani for permanent cures.
(v) Herbal medicines are comparatively less expensive.
(vi) The western medical profession has begun to acknowledge the value
of herbal medicines.
(vii) This also explains the fact that many purely Allopathic units have
also adapted the use of formulations which include natural herbal
drugs .

5. Threats to Medicinal PlantsMarketingNoticed By Researchers
1.Deforestation
2.Over and improper collection of Wild
Medicinal plants
3.Overgrazing By Livestock
4.Conversion of forest land into agriculture
Land

6. Identification of Markets
The process of identifying different market
segments
The process of identifying different markets
would help the farmers to focus on which
types of herbs to be grown and how
marketing should be made.

7. Medicinal Herbs markets in World
1. Global/International Market ( Japan,China
,India ,Germany,USA ,UAE , UK)
2. National Market ( Islamabad)
3. Provincial Market ( Lahore , Peshawar,
Quetta)
4. Regional Market ( Mingora)
5. Local Market ( Subdivision and District level)

10. Marketing Channels of Medicinal Plants
The main driver for the cultivation of medicinal plants could be
located in two component , namely pull and push effects.
In pull effect , are the factors that attract farmers to cultivate
medicinal plants rather than traditional crops including
1.Attractive Price
2. Fixed market channel
3. Price assurance by agents .
4.Monopoly of the group of producers

11. Marketing Structure
1. Trade of crude medicinal drugs is very erratic in Pakistan.
2. Prices fluctuate greatly due to variations in external and
internal demands within the country.
3. Traders frequently underpay collectors of the raw materials
and sell the products at a large profit.
4. Hence the availability of particular crude drugs remains very
unstable and market trends cannot be easily determined.

12. Features of Marketing
1. Market Trends
2. Price information
3. Market news
4. Botanical product specifications
5. Meetings and trade shows
6. Directory of global herb trade associations
7. Special features (e.g. company profiles, regulations)

13. Global Marketing
Opportunities:

14. Theopportunitiesonthesupplysideof theindigenousmedicinemarketinclude
1. Availability of scarce medicinal plants in remote
locations,· availability of medicinal plants on commercial
farmlands.
2. Availability of plant supply from changing land-use,
3. Availability of medicinal plants on managed communal lands.
4. Availability of a wide range of cultivation, processing, and
Marketing expertise in other sectors.
5. Access to international examples of medicine production for
traditional markets.
6. Large demand for new agricultural opportunities on
commercial farms, subsistence farms, and redistributed
farms,

15. The opportunities on the supply side of the indigenous
medicine market include contd
7. Availability of progressive farmers with access to resources,
8.Robust nature of indigenous medicinal plants which require few agricultural
Inputs .wide range of sites for product distribution, ranging from the farm
gate to urban processing factories,
9.Ability to supply specific species at times of the year when they are usually
not available,
10. A large number of plant gatherers with appropriate knowledge that could
promote the cultivation of plants for the market,
11. Documentation and establishment of accepted guidelines for use and
dosages of medicinal plants, and
12. Several organizations have experience in indigenous medicine markets and in
the cultivation of medicinal plant species in farming and nursery systems.

19. 1.Price

20. 2.Product / Services

21. 3.Promotion

22. 4.Place / Access

23. 5.People

24. 6.Process

25. 7.Physical Environment

26. Whereas Push effects are dominated by
1.Uncertainity of net income.
2.Well established market channel
There are two marketing routes that operate in field
1.Gather /Cultivator -----= Pharmacy
2.Gather/Cultivator ----=Trader ----= Pharmacy

27. International Marketing
Export Promotion Bureau may guide
about some of the plants that are
currently demanded . The publication
of data about medicinal herbs in this
regard will be of great value to different
stake holders

28. Problemsin Marketingof MedicinalPlants
S.No Problem Solution
1. Poor agricultural practices Good agriculture Practices
specific to area and climate
2. Poor harvesting (indiscriminate) and
post-harvest treatment practices
Proper harvesting and practices
to minimize Post Harvest losses
in storage
3. Lack of research on development of
high-yielding varieties, domestication
Enhancement of Research
And Development Projects
4 Inefficient processing techniques
leading to low yields and poor quality
products , Insufficient data on the
peak and lean raw drug collection
periods
Introduction of new processing
techniques and preparation of
data for products both in yield
and use.
5 Lack of Poor propagation techniques Promotion of new propagation
methods

29. Problemsin Marketingof MedicinalPlants contd
S.No Problem Solution
6 Poor quality control procedures Standardization of Products
7. High energy losses during
processing
Low consuming energy machineries
8. Lack of current good
manufacturing practices
Promotion of Good Manufacturing
Practices , Traditional medicines manufacturers
and scientists should be encouraged to carry
out research into the cultivation of medicinal
plants.
9 Lack of R & D on product and
process development - Difficulties
in marketing
Strengthening of rural development
infrastructure .
10 Lack of local market for primary
processed products
Provision of Local Market to farmers and
linkage of collectors with market
11 Lack of trained personnel and
equipment
Human Resource Development through
Training to different stake holders in collection,
cultivation, processing and marketing of
medicines.

30. Problemsin Marketingof MedicinalPlants contd
S.No Problem Solution
12 Lack of facilities to fabricate
equipment locally
Provision of facilities to fabricate
equipment locally
13 Lack of access to latest
Technological and market information
Provision of access to Latest
Technology (MIS)
14 The lack of traceability of the path of
the raw drug back to it source
Paving a Path as desired by Farming
Community ( Farmers Organizations)
15 Owing to the lack of information on
the market size and identification of
all market sites in Pakistan .
Establishment of Market
Information System marketing
strategies by the companies
dealing in herbal medicine.
16 Absence of comparative studies of
price structure and lack of time series
data on prices
Initiation of studies in this respect at
( All Levels)
17 Ineffective regulatory body, ineffective
regulation by the government in their
crucial role in the prevention of illegal
trade.
Legislation for drugs Sale and Use .
legislation improving the status of herbal
medicine industry

31. Problemsin Marketingof Medicinal Plants contd
S.No Problem Solution
18
Lack of attitudes toward Medicinal
Plants Cultivation and market
management
Creation of Attitude through
awareness programme on mass
media
19
Lack of Training to wild medicinal
plants collector
The plant collectors are needed to be
trained in proper harvesting methods.
20
Knowledge in Lack of correct
identification of
medicinal plants
Proper identification through with the
collaboration among the taxonomists
and the local Herbalists is vital.
21
The price and quality of medicinal
plants in the market is not
uniform.
Necessary measures should
be taken in this regard for the
uniformity
22
No proper Selection of Plants as
per ecological zones.
Introduction of selected medicinal
plants as minor crops will not only
reduce the pressure on the natural
vegetation but will also improve the
Socio economical conditions of the
farmers.

32. S.No Problem Solution
23 Collectors, processors and traders face
problems in finding favorable markets due to
price factors, quality and quantity
considerations.
Knowledge to be Provided
24 Financial and logistic constraints make it
difficult for local producers and collectors to
interact more
closely with prospective clients
Financial help
25 Inadequate knowledge and incomplete
Information on products, markets and prices
on the part of collectors/producers
Awareness
26 Difficult to No proper recognition access
appropriate markets and market information.
of environmentally and commercially sound
MPs.
Allowed Access
27 Lack of standardization and consistency in
quality for international marketing
Proper standardization
28 Astringent phyto-sanitary regulations such as
requirement of microbiological test, pesticides
and heavy metal test by international markets
Legislation
Problemsin Marketing of MedicinalPlants contd

33. Suggestionandrecommendationsfor Marketing
1.Recommendation of Medicinal Plants in different Ecolological zones in
Country special reference to KPK .one village one product .
2. Creation of awareness about medicinal plants both wild and cultivated
Through mass media .in production and marketing
3. Marketing of medicinal plants in local and national as well as in international
markets through exposure by different stake holders .
4. Local Community should be trained regarding methods of collection and
drying, and sustainable harvesting Demonstration of the cultivation
packages and R & D in marketing .
5. Plant collectors should be encouraged and educated in order to increase
their bargaining power , thus increasing their revenues from medicinal
plants.
6. Seed bank for the arrangement of MP seed , plants . Through farmers
bodies.
.

34. Suggestionandrecommendationsfor Marketingcontd
7. Organic products and value addition through capacity building , the role of
women to be included in activities. review of local knowledge and harvest practices
8. A holistic management action plan is necessary to formulate for assessment and management of resource
base; best harvesting and processing practices; trade issues and aspects dealing with the intellectual
property rights on the traditional medicines .
9. Investments are needed for the development of appropriate conversation, cultivation harvesting strategies,
which will simultaneously meet the demand for low-cost and locally available medicines
10. At the same time, there must be immediate efforts to ensure the conservation of Diverse biological
resources and the preservation and application of local and cultural knowledge On the use of these
resources. biological studies (growth and regeneration rates, pollination system, seed dispersal, potential for confusion
with similar species, etc.) and assessment of harvest impact on viability of individuals
11. design and implementation of management scheme: annual harvesting quota, seasonal or regional
restriction and on certain plant parts or size classes, domestication programme
12. Research to investigate the sustainability of production systems is lacking and needs to be stimulated for a
better understanding of the biological dynamics of the resource in the wild and in domestication.
13. Eco-labelling and other social and economic incentives to strengthen market credibility and
competitiveness of biodiversity-friendly products need to be promoted
14. On the issue of intellectual property rights it needs to be elaborated how the country, the local user or other
entity can be adequately compensated for use of the resource by outsiders.

35. Suggestion and recommendations in Marketing
15. The gaps between the producers/collectors and traders or buyers need to be minimized as
these are at present very wide and often inequitable
16. A holistic management action plan is necessary to formulate for assessment and
management of
resource base; best harvesting and processing practices; trade issues and aspects dealing
with
the intellectual property rights on the traditional medicines
17.A ll-our efforts should be made to adopt a package of best practices encompassing
conservation, cultivation, quality control and standardization and research and
development for medicinal and herbals for improving its marketing performance efficiently.
18. Research should identify genotypes with high potential for commercial purposes, and then
conduct trials for the selection of high yielding varieties. here should be a reorientation of
research investment regarding medicinal plants, with a shift from pharmacological studies
to research which identifies effective methods of sustaining market supply and improving
the quality of products currently consumed.