Non-Timber Forest Products Marketing Systems and Market Players in Southwest Virginia: Crafts, Medicinal and Herbal, and Specialty Wood Products

Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are important in rural southwest Virginia as a source of household income. Marketing system of crafts, medicinal and herbal, and specialty wood products are studied using exploratory and qualitative research methods. Fifty market players at various levels in marketing chains are interviewed to get the information on elements of marketing system–products, product differentiation, value addition, pricing, promotion, distribution, and marketing chains. NTFP trade is a common phenomenon in southwest Virginia. The greatest opportunity exists for local level marketing of crafts and specialty wood products. In the case of medicinal and herbal products, very little local value addition takes place within the region, and as a result local market players have little control. Policy interventions arc required to enhance the returns to local collectors, which will also contribute to sustainable management of forest resources. [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-342-9678. E-mail address: Website: ] Sarah M. Greene and A. L. Hammett, Department of Wood Science and Forest Products, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061 USA. Shashi Kant, Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto, Toronto, M5S 3B3 Canada. Journal of Sustainable Forestry, Vol. 11(3) 200