AD HOC MEETING TO PREPARE A STUDY ON THE OUTLOOK FOR NON-WOOD GOODS AND SERVICES OF FORESTS
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
22-24 FEBRUARY 1993
Representatives from 14 countries (in Europe and North America) and three UN agencies participated in this meeting of the ECE/FAO Joint Working Party on Forest Economics and Statistics.
All participants stressed the importance of non-wood goods and services for forest managers, policy-makers and the general public. In many cases, they were as important as or more important than timber production. There are numerous projects under way to analyse, quantify and evaluate these resources, despite the many technical and theoretical obstacles. An international study on the outlook for non-wood goods and services was considered highly desirable.
For more information and details of follow-up, please contact Mr Ed Pepke, Forestry Officer, Joint ECE/FAO Agriculture and Timber Division, Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland.
INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR ON MINOR FOREST PRODUCTS IN FORESTRY DEHRA DUN, INDIA, 17-18 APRIL 1993
This international seminar, held at the Institute of Management Development (IMD), ONGC, Kaulagarh Road, Dehra Dun, India, was organized by the Centre for Minor Forest Products, and sponsored by the Ford Foundation. The seminar was organized in five technical sessions and a total of 51 technical papers was presented, highlighting important points about the role and importance of minor forest products (MFPs) in the daily life of rural communities.
The five sessions were devoted to the following themes: importance of MFPs and question of nomenclature; MFPs for trade and prospects of value-added products; building up appropriate computerized databases on MFPs; MFPs for wasteland management, biodiversity maintenance and conservation of the ecosystem; and MFP-based forest management for socio-economic development.
The meeting, inter alia, stressed the importance of the socio-economic roles of these multi-use forest products and suggested that:
• tribal communities be an integral part of the forest ecosystem, and that their welfare activity be given prime importance in sustainable forest management and harvesting;
• primary collectors be involved in all aspects of management of MFPs, i.e. from growth (regeneration, development, protection) to harvesting;
• adequate research on the control of pests and pathogens be provided;
• that MFPs be marketed at an optimum price;
• that MFP collectors be assured a better remuneration with value addition to the products.
Further information can be obtained from Dr M.P. Shiva, Managing Director, Centre for Minor Forest Products, HIG-2 No. 8, Indirapuram, Dehra Dun, India.
REGIONAL CONSULTATION ON INDUSTRIAL UTILIZATION OF MEDICINAL AND AROMATIC PLANTS IN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
VIENNA, AUSTRIA, 5-8 JULY 1993
The consultation, organized by UNIDO and cosponsored by WHO, was attended by some 75 participants from 32 countries and eight international and other organizations. The participants represented an interesting mix of expertise-medicine (traditional and modern), pharmacology, phytochemistry, plant sciences, agronomy, agriculture, horticulture, food science, industrial processing, trade and marketing, research administration and business management.
The major issue addressed was integrating development of industrial utilization of medicinal and aromatic plants in countries of Asia and the Pacific regions. The subissues discussed at the meeting were:
• policies covering health, agricultural, industrial and trade aspects;
• agrotechnology and process technology for industrial-scale production of herbal chemicals and essential oils; quality assurance, pharmacological evaluation and regulatory requirements;
• strengthening research and development activities;
• human resource development for specialized technical and managerial skills; entrepreneurship and marketing aspects;
• regional and international cooperation for development of the subsector.
The discussions at the different sessions of the meeting covered a wide range of related topics. The conclusions of the meeting, among others, stressed the following:
• Medicinal plants play a key role in world health. Herbal medicines bridge the gap between the availability of and demand for medicines, especially at the community level, in developing countries. Thus, the need for a systematic, integrated approach to the industrial utilization of medicinal plants is stressed. Such an approach could include the development of coherent national policies covering such aspects as the identification of medicinal plants and agro- and process technologies, the cultivation of such plants, research and development, and human-resource-development facilities for the industrial-scale production of medicines based on these plants.
• The industrial utilization of medicinal and aromatic plants should be undertaken with conservation measures in mind. The collection of plants in the wild should be kept to the minimum and carried out under controlled conditions. The adaptation of medicinal plants from the wild should be undertaken widely and should ensure the availability of pharmacologically active constituents and/or materials through improved genetic plant breeding.
• The industrial-scale use of aromatic plants for essential oils, flavours and fragrances contributes to the economies of developing countries through improved export earnings and import substitution as well as through employment creation and the alleviation of poverty in communities.
• The deployment of modern agro-and industrial technologies for the development of the subsector should be further pursued. In addition, appropriate information systems need to be developed. Research and development activities related to products. industrial processes and quality control, and the development of human resources, creativity and entrepreneurship in further strengthening trade in this subsector should be accorded a high priority.
"Given its direct relevance to health, social well-being and economic performance, the manufacture of products from medicinal and herbal plants is one of the most people-oriented of industrial sectors." Mr Mauricio de Maria y Campos, Director-General of UNIDO at the opening address to the Regional Consultation on Industrial Utilization of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in Asia and the Pacific, Vienna, 5-8 August 1993.
For further information regarding the meeting proceedings or UNIDO activities in the area of NWFPs, please contact Dr Tuley De Silva, Special Technical Adviser, Chemical Industries Branch, UNIDO, D-1222, Vienna International Centre, A-1400 Vienna, Austria.
EXPERT GROUP MEETING ON INDUSTRIAL UTILIZATION OF MEDICINAL PLANTS
PANAJACHEL, GUATEMALA
11-17 JULY 1993
This expert group meeting organized by UNIDO was attended by 50 people from 23 countries including 18 national delegates from countries of Latin America and the Caribbean and six representatives of UN and other agencies. The objective of the meeting was to provide experts from countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region with assessed information on the technical and economic aspects of technology for processing medicinal plants with a view to initiating or enhancing their own activities and to have a way for cooperation within the region and with other developing countries active in this field. The meeting served as a forum for exchange of experience among specialists and researchers with different levels of R&D experience in medicinal plant-based pharmaceutical manufacturing. It also provided opportunities for the participants to discuss cooperation possibilities in the plant-based pharmaceutical industry.
For copies of the meeting report and for more details, please contact Dr Tuley De Silva, Special Technical Adviser, Chemical Industries Branch, UNIDO, D-1222, Vienna International Centre, A-1400 Vienna, Austria.
ROUND TABLE ON AROMATIC PLANTS AND SPICES
ST GEORGE'S, GRENADA
12-15 OCTOBER 1993
A round table on the development of management, processing, packing, quality control and marketing of aromatic plants and spices in the CARICOM countries was held in St George's, Grenada, within the activities of the Caribbean technical cooperation network on agroindustrial development. It was organized by the FAO Regional Office, and cosponsored by the Grenada Produce Chemist Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Trade, Industry, Energy and Production of Grenada.
Delegates from eight of the 12 countries of the Caribbean Community participated in the event. The agenda included subjects related to development in the field of aromatic plants and spices, including the need to count on appropriate material for plantations produced in the subregion, the subject of organic agriculture, and how the countries of the region can deal jointly with the problem of imports of packing material on a retail basis to market their products. The round table also considered the importance of training in quality control, packing, labelling and specifications of standards for contractors of the subregion, and the coordination among the countries to promote export markets for products such as pepper and nutmeg.
For more information, please contact Dr G. Paltrinieri, Regional Food Technology and Agro-Industries Officer, Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (RLAC), Santiago, Cile
REGIONAL EXPERT CONSULTATION ON NON-WOOD FOREST PRODUCTS FOR ENGLISH-SPEAKING AFRICAN COUNTRIES
ARUSHA, UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA, 17-22 OCTOBER 1993
At the invitation of the Government of Tanzania, a Regional Expert Consultation on Non-Wood Forest Products for English-speaking African Countries, jointly sponsored by FAO and CSC, was held in Arusha, from 17 to 22 October 1993. The objectives of the consultation were: 1) to discuss the current status of production and utilization of NWFPs in the countries involved, the need for improvement in their production, management, harvesting, processing and marketing and the development opportunities they provide for the benefit of rural communities; 2) to update available information on the different aspects of NWFPs; 3) to suggest broad guidelines for the development of NWFPs; and 4) to facilitate exchange of ideas regarding the need and feasibility of establishing a regional cooperative network on non-wood forest products.
The expert consultation brought together some 25 experts and observers from eight countries of the region and five international and other organizations.
The meeting was organized in four parts. The first part provided a global and regional overview of the situation relating to NWFPs. The second part involved the presentation of Pilot Country Studies from the participating countries and special reports by observers. The third part was devoted to discussions of main issues. The fourth part involved group discussions on specific issues to elaborate broad guidelines and suggestions to be incorporated in the proceedings of the meeting.
The discussions covered issues related to definition and classification of NWFPs, integrated management of natural forests for wood and non-wood products, domestication of wild sources of NWFPs, harvesting and processing, trade and marketing, and institutional aspects.
"I believe that one of the messages to come over loud and clear at Arusha was the need to determine and understand how existing systems function. Without an appreciation and clear understanding of existing systems, and their constraints, future strategies on wide-ranging NWFPs' development issues cannot be formulated with any confidence."
The report will be available in due course and copies can be obtained by contacting the Forest Products Division, FAO Forestry Department, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy.
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ESSENTIAL OILS, FRAGRANCES AND FLAVOURS
KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA
31 OCTOBER-4 NOVEMBER 1993
The conference was organized by the International Federation of Essential Oils and Aroma Traders and the Essential Oil, Flavour and Fragrance Association. The meeting consisted of two general sessions and two technical sessions. At the technical sessions a range of subjects was discussed: country reports and profiles, research, technological developments, product utilization and application, ISO (International Standards Organization) standards and specifications. Of the several papers presented, one dealt with the "Essential oil research programme in the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia".
For further information concerning the meeting and its proceedings, please contact the International Federation of Essential Oils and Aroma Traders, Kemp House 152160, City Road, London EC1V 2NP, United Kingdom. Fax: 071 250 0965.
WEST AFRICAN BEE RESEARCH SEMINAR
ACCRA, GHANA, DECEMBER 1993
In December 1993, participants from seven African countries attended a meeting on bee research, which considered the problems faced in the development of beekeeping in Africa.
In Ghana, for example, it was pointed out that more and more large trees are being felled and the native habitat destroyed, bees are short of nesting sites and resort to nesting in houses and other human-made constructions. Bees are therefore increasingly perceived as a nuisance. There are even commercial bee killers who are paid to destroy colonies with insecticides.
The meeting emphasized the need for action research to improve the situation of beekeeping in the region.