Problems in marketing of of medicinal plants in pakistan A Presentation By Mr Allah Dad Khan Former Director General Agriculture Extension KPK Province and Visiting Professor the University of Agriculture Peshawar Pakistan

2. Problems in Marketing
of Medicinal Plants
In
Pakistan
By Mr Allah Dad Khan
03329221298
allahdad52@gmail.com

5.  Out of about 258,650 species of higher plants
reported from the world; more than 10% are
used to cure ailing communities.
 Plants are an important source of traditional
medicine for the treatment of various diseases .
 It has been estimated that herbal medicines are
used by more than 80% of the world’s population
in developing countries to meet their primary
healthcare needs.
 Beside many known drugs (e.g. tubocurarine,
reserpine, aspirin and morphine etc) are
discovered based on traditional knowledge.

6. 1. Pakistan is endowed with the wealth of medicinal
plants.
2. These are the natural botanical source of medicines
being
manufactured by indigenous pharmaceutical houses in
Pakistan.
3. These are also the basic source of modern
pharmaceutical market, although today it has
become an entire medical world of synthetics, with
elevated prices a common man cannot afford.
4. More than 10% of the national flora of Pakistan (600–
700 plant species) are used for medicinal purposes

7.  Though medicinal plants from wild are
important source of income for local
communities, but if not properly managed,
this may lead to the destruction of habitat
and in return extinction of species.
 There is therefore, a need to find ways to
harvest medicinal plants sustainably from the
wild, train local collectors (in proper
collection techniques, train the people in
growing medicinal plants, and remove some
of the middlemen from the trading chain.

8.  Marketing is the management process
responsible for identifying, anticipating and
satisfying customers’ requirements
profitably
 A set of decisions and processes that
every organization uses to carry out an
exchange with others
 The process of planning and executing the
conception, pricing, promotion and
distribution of ideas, goods and services to
create exchanges that satisfy
organizational objectives

9.  Also known as the 4 Ps (Product, Place,
Promotion, Price), or
 Known as the 7 Ps in the Extended
Marketing Mix (adding People, Physical
Evidence and Process).
 Now 8Ps.

10. Light up your natural products business with the 7 Ps.

14. Product

20.  Blend of the mix depends upon:
 Marketing objectives
 Type of product
 Target market
 Market structure
 Rivals’ behaviour
 Global issues – culture/religion, etc.
 Marketing position
 Product portfolio
 Product lifecycle
 Boston Matrix

21. 21
The Marketing Concept
Consumers
Marketing Research Marketing Segmentation
Product Price Place Promotion

22. 1. Most medicinal plants are harvested from wild, As the trade has
become market oriented and inter national , the growing number
of wild crafters is out stripping natural population. Hence there
is need to establish this trade on sustainable basis.
2. Most of the medicinal herb species are collected form the wild
but some of these are also grown particularly by small farmers to
diversify their cropping system and to earn some additional
income for their sustenance
3. The organic farming is a basic philosophy for production of
medicinal herbs. Organic farming methods are based on nature’s
principles of production. Organically produced medicinal herbs
are believed to be living in harmony with the natural system by
cooperating rather than competing

23.  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
incuding
 1.Attractive Price , fixed market channel , price assurance
by agents .
 2.Monopoly of the group of producers

24. 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

25. 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,

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

28. 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)

30. 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 methods Promotion of new propagation
methods

31. 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.

32. S.No Problem Solution
12 Lack of facilities to fabricate
equipment locally
Provision of facilities
13 Lack of access to latest
Technological and market
information
Provision of access to Latest
Technology
14 The lack of traceability of the path
of the raw drug back to it
source
Paving a Path as desired by Farming
Community
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.
17 Ineffective regulatory body,
ineffective regulation by the
government in their crucial role in
Legislation for drugs Sale and Use .
legislation improving the status of
herbal medicine industry

33. 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
No Training to collector The plant collectors are needed to
be trained in proper harvesting
methods.
20
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 Introduction of selected medicinal
plants as minor crops will not only
reduce the pressure on the natural
vegetation but will also improve the

35. S.No Problem Solution
23 Collectors, processors and traders face problems in finding
favorable markets due to price factors,
quality and quantity considerations.
Training
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

36. 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 .
.

37. 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.
.

38. 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

39. 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.

40.  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

41. 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.

43.  The last decade has seen an explosion of
e-marketing spurred by a rapid revolution
in the development of communications
technology. The economic downturn in
2008 resulted in marketing departments
scaling down and consolidating their
marketing activity. When marketing
budgets are tight, companies will use the
cheapest most effective forms of
communications to reach consumers. E-
marketing can be very cost effective, as
packaging and distribution costs may be
avoided.
(Wale and Phoenix, 2009)

44.  e-Communication, electronic
communication or virtual communication is
effectively the standard communication
tools deployed electronically. Email, instant
messaging, voice mail, conference calls,
web conferences and video conferences
are all types of e-communication
(Benson, 2004)