Database on Medicinal Plants / 1 - Consumer Unity & Trust Society

Buy back arrangements imply thatcorporate and large tradingcompanies enter into arrangementswith farmers to supply crucial farmand management inputs and buybackthe produce, making itadvantageous both for the produceras well as the industry.Contract farming and buy-backarrangements provide the onlypractical alternatives to exporterswhose customers require tracebility.under study, government is also directly involved in such system andencourages organic cultivation of medicinal plants. It has been suggestedthat buy-back arrangements between farmers and large user companiescould effect increased farmers’ earnings and reduce their risk. Our studyof the supply chain suggests that the current system of purchase is ideallysuited to meeting the industry’s requirements. 47 It is unlikely this will bechanged in favour of direct purchase from farmers. Firms require manyvarieties of raw material, often as many as three to four hundred. Animportant consideration of their policy is to rationalise purchasing by buyingfrom a limited number of suppliers and large wholesalers. Companieswould find it near impossible to acquire everything they need directly fromfarmers. However, there could be a role for buy back arrangements withlarge traders and exporters.Large traders may be interested in offering buy-back arrangements forspecies which are difficult to obtain, whose supply fluctuates or when anarrangement at a lower than market price can be made. Large exportersmay also find buy-back arrangements attractive in the future, as therequirement of traceability will become increasingly important. At presentit is impossible to trace the origin of any material, as there is littletransparency and documentation. Contract farming and buy-backarrangements provide the only practical alternatives to exporters whosecustomers require tracebility. However, as it is still possible to exportwithout traceability, the full impact of this trend is yet to be felt in India.4. Government PoliciesThe governments in the Himalayanstates have introduced polices bothto conserve resources in situ and topromote cultivation by farmers tocounter the rapid depletion ofmedicinal plants, caused by theirlarge scale collection from the wild.The governments in the Himalayan states are seriously concerned aboutthe rapid depletion of medicinal plants, caused by their large scalecollection from the wild. They have introduced polices both to conserveresources in situ and to promote cultivation by farmers. In order to checkunsustainable and illegal collection, the institutions and mechanismsinvolved in the collection of medicinal plants from the wild are beingreorganised. Most states have also established State Medicinal PlantBoards. These Boards are responsible for coordinating various activitiesto promote the development of the medicinal plant sector. 48In spite of various measures introduced in the past, government policieshave met with little success in reducing collection from the wild andpromoting cultivation. As the problem of depletion has continued to worsen,there have been efforts to introduce new measures.The new policy measures includegiving greater responsibility to theForest Departments both to controlcollection from the wild and toundertake the marketing of material.The new policy measures include giving greater responsibility to the ForestDepartments both to control collection from the wild and to undertake themarketing of material. For example, until recently the Bhaishaj Sangh(medicinal plants cooperative) was solely responsible for overseeing thecollection of medicinal plants in Uttaranchal. It was said that the contractorsmostly controlled the Sangh, and that they misused it by undertakingexcessive and illegal collection. It was also used to collect species whosecollection was restricted by the Forest Department of Uttaranchal. TheForest Department will now have greater control over the collection andmarketing of medicinal plants in Uttaranchal.In Himachal Pradesh, policy includes measures to involve local peopleand give powers to panchayats to issue permits to trade, including exportand to species that are not banned. The government hopes that thesewill enforce the traditional rights of the local communities and checkindiscriminate exploitation of medicinal plants by traders. The Forest<strong>Database</strong> on Medicinal Plants / 17