American ginseng is the most popular, andmay be the most valued medicinal plantgathered from hardwood forests of the east-ern United States.Photo by: Gary Kauffman, Botanist, USForest Service, National Forests of NorthCarolina (printed with permission).

edible products include berries, nuts, sapand resins, ferns, and wild tubers andbulbs. Large-scale commercial mush-room harvests in the Pacific Northwestconcentrates on six species—matsutake,morels, chanterelles, boletes, truffles,and hedgehogs. The collection and mar-keting of forest-harvested huckleberriesand blueberries supports thriving cot-

tage industr ies in thePacific Northwest, UpperMidwest andNortheastern UnitedStates. In Appalachia,ramps (wild onions orleeks) are widely collectedand important to localcommunities. Maple syrupp r o d u c t i o n i n theNortheast has a long tradi-tion andrural jobs.

provides many

James L. ChamberlainNon-Timber Forest Products Technologist, U.S. Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Blacksburg, VA

Specialty woody

A.L. Hammettproducts are considered non-

Associate Professor, Department of Wood Science and Forest Products, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VAtimber if they are producedfrom woody vines, saplings, or

Recently a great deal of attention hasbeen given to forest products that areplant-based but do not come from tim-ber. These “alternative” products arefound growing under the forest canopyas herbs, shrubs, vines, moss and evenlichen. Although they have been gath-ered for generations, non-timber forestproducts have had less attention than“more important” timber products.However, astute landowners, willing tomake the effort, may improve forest-based incomes by gathering and market-ing these products.

What are NTFPs?

There are numerous NTFPs, andtheir management and utilization often

overwhelms forest managers. Non-tim-ber forest products are produced fromplants, parts of plants, fungi, and otherbiological material that are harvestedfrom within and on the edges of natural,manipulated or disturbed forests. Manyparts are harvested, including the roots,tubers, leaves, bark, twigs and branches,fruit, sap and resin. Classifying NTFPsinto categories helps appreciate theirrange and potential. We have organizedNTFPs into four product categories: edi-ble and culinary, specialty woody prod-ucts, floral and decorative, and medici-nal and dietary supplements.

Fungi, particularly mushrooms, areperhaps the most well-known and docu-mented edible forest products. Other

parts of trees, but not sawnwood. For example, burls, twigs, branch-es, and cypress knees are processed intoproducts, which are not timber-based.These products include handicrafts,carvings and turnings, utensils and con-tainers. Also included are furnituremade from branches, twigs and vines, aswell as tools and musical instrumentsmade from wood not sawn from logs.

Floral and decorative products,made from forest plants complement liveflower arrangements and form the basisfor dried ornaments. They includefresh/dried flowers, aromatic oils,greenery, basket filler, wreaths, and rop-ing. Spanish moss, collected from theSoutheastern forests is exported to pro-vide packing for flower bulbs, and mar-

FOREST LANDOWNER

Top: People flock to the forests to collect the edible forest products.These men are collecting ramps (wild onions) for a local festival toraise support for community-based activities.Photo by: Jim Chamberlain.

Bottom: Fraser fir seedlings are pulled from the forest floor inNorth Carolina to supply Christmas tree nurseries.Photo by: Jim Chamberlain.

witch hazel, Market outlookOregon-grape, The markets for many non-timbercascara sagada, forest products are well established,saw palmetto, have formal channels through which theand ginseng. Of products flow, yet remain unknown andthese, ginseng is

the most commonly men-tioned, and may be the high-est valued. Five southernstates (Virginia, Kentucky,Tennessee, North Carolinaand West Virginia) account forover half of all forest-harvest-ed ginseng.

The Value of NTFPs

The total value of the non-timber forest products indus-try is difficult to determine.

keted in United States craft stores. Insouthern Appalachia, grape and smokevines are used for wreaths and other dec-orative products. The harvest of galax,from western North Carolina for theinternational floral trade, is thriving.Pacific Northwest examples includesalal, evergreen huckleberry, and bear-grass. Evergreen boughs cut from whitepine, balsam fir, noble fir, and otherconiferous species may be the largestsegment of the floral sector.

The use and trade of herbal medi-cines derived from forest plants has along history and may constitute thehighest valued segment of the non-tim-ber forest products industry. Some well-known examples of plant-derived medi-cines include Taxol from the Pacific yewtree, Digitalis from foxglove, andLobeline from Indian tobacco. More than50 plants with medicinal value are har-vested from Southern Appalachiaforests. Common medicinal plants col-lected from forests include black cohosh,

Some segments are widely fragmentedwith many small producers, while a fewlarge companies dominate other seg-ments. But whatever figures one exam-ine the value is quite evident.

In 1992, the harvesting of approxi-mately 4 million pounds of mushroomscontributed more than $40 million to thePacific Northwest economy. More than25 million pounds of wild-harvestedblack walnuts are processed each year,generating about $2.5 million for collec-tors. In 1997, maple syrup productiontotaled almost 1.3 million gallons, valuedat more than $30 million. In 1995, the USexported forest-harvested moss andlichens worth more than $14 million. Bysome estimates, the worldwide marketfor herbal medicines exceeds $12 billion.These are but a few examples found inthe literature concerning the economicsof non-timber forest products. For thesources of these figures, the reader isencouraged to review the list of selectedreferences.

mysterious to many forest landowners.Some segments of the NTFP industryhave grown rapidly over the last decade,and some have great potential to contin-ue to grow. Understanding the marketenvironment and trends is importantwhen considering alternative forestproducts. In recent years, some segmentsof the industry have reportedly grown atannual rate in excess of 20 percent. Forexample, the sale of herbal medicines inthe United States was projected to expe-rience a three-fold increase, from 1995through 2000. At the same time, the mar-ket for these products can fluctuatetremendously from year to year. In 1998retail sales of black cohosh grew almost500 percent. Unfortunately, the followingyear, with warehouses full, the pricedeclined to a point where dealers couldnot sell their black cohosh inventory andsales of other major medicinal herbs(e.g., purple coneflower, forest-harvestedginseng, saw palmetto) dropped as well.But, as inventories decline, harvestingmay rebound for these products.

The demographic conditions andconsumer preferences in the UnitedStates are encouraging for the continuedgrowth in the trade and use of NTFPs. Ingeneral, consumers are moving towardthings that are organic or made of natur-al materials. Many Americans in the“baby boomer” generation have becomefrustrated with the high costs of westernmedicines and are looking for alterna-tives, which includes herbal medicines.More than half of the nearly 40 millionmen, who will turn 50 in the next decade,may experience prostate problems.

MARCH/APRIL 2002

Many of these may choose alternativessuch as saw palmetto, a plant whoseberries have been shown effectiveagainst inflamed prostate. For thelandowner who is willing to exploreunusual markets and to take the risksassociated with new ventures, non-tim-ber forest products may provide alterna-tives to increasing forest income.

The diversity of products that can be gathered from the forests is astounding, andincludes vines, cones, food, and wreaths.

only to have the market decline ordisappear at harvest time. For theentrepreneur the pitfalls may notbe as daunting as perceived. Yet,like any business venture, beforegetting involved in harvestingNTFPs, the landowner needs todetermine if the projected benefitsoffset the costs.

Selected References

Hammett, A. L. and J. L.Chamberlain. 1998. “Sustainable Useof Non-Traditional Forest Products:

Alternative Forest-based IncomeOpportunities.” In proceedings of: NaturalResources Income Opportunities forPrivate Lands. Hagerstown, MD. April 5-7, p. 141-147.

Hammett, A. L. and Dylan Jenkins. 1999.Non-Timber Forest Products: NewOpportunities for Alternative Forest-basedIncomes. Forest Landowner 58(2): 66-69.

Elephant, proceedings of the conference:The business and Science of SpecialForest Products. Schnepf, Chris (editor)January 26-27, Hillsboro, Oregon. WesternForestry and Conservation Association,Portland, OR. p. 11-23.

Schlosser, W., and K. Blatner. 1995. “Thewild edib le mushroom industry o fWashington, Oregon, and Idaho: a 1992 sur-vey of processors."93(3): 31-36.

Journal of Forestry.

Thomas, M.G. and, D.R. Schumann. 1993.Income opportunities in special forest prod-ucts, self-kelp suggestions for rural entrepre-neurs. USDA Forest Service. AgriculturalInformation Bulletin 666. Washington, DC.206 pp.

Vance, N.C. and J. Thomas (editors). 1997.Special Forest Products – biodiversity meetsthe marketplace. Sustainable forestry –seminar series. 1995 October-November;Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR.Washington, DC; US Department o fPotential and Pitfalls

Schlosser, W. and K. Blatner. 1994. “An Agriculture. 164 pp.Just like many ventures, non-timber Economic Overview of the Special Forest

forest products may have great potential Products Industry.” In Dancing with anto provide added income to forestlandowners. However, there are pitfallswhich the landowners need to be aware.To realize these products’ potential,landowners need to have a clear under-standing of what NTFPs are found intheir forests. Without an inventory thereis no way to know what is available, howmuch can be harvested, nor when to har-vest. Perhaps the greatest challenge tothe forest landowner is to identify andfigure out appropriate market entrypoints. It is essential to identify whereand to whom the products will be sold,and to understand current and projecteddemand. Without this knowledge, prod-ucts could be harvested without mar-kets. Or, the landowner could invest timeand energy into cultivating products,

FOREST LANDOWNER