Preferences, prevalence and use of non-timber forest products in Bohemia

Adam Janata

Bachelor's thesis

Abstract:

Due to the changes in the perception of forests and forest products that happened in recent years, the general interest in non-timber forest products arose around the whole world. The products such as mushrooms, forest fruits, honey or nuts started to be perceived as a possible alternative to the timber oriented commercial forest management strategies. Given the fact that NTFPs can play several various roles for the local communities, depending on the region and economic potential of its population, we decided to document the role of forests for the population of Bohemia and to document what were the most used and purchased non-timber forest products there. A consumer survey (n=123) was carried out in eight major urban centres in the region of the Ore Mountains, a rural area that is characteristic for its low economic potential and industrial character, and in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic as well as the wealthiest region in the country. Food products were the most used ones and consumers from both study sites regarded quality and certification as the most important criteria for purchasing such products. For majority of the respondents, visiting forests represented only a way to relax and NTFPs were not considered as products to be later commercialized. Family showed up to be very important factor for distribution of NTFPs as well as the main knowledge source, and private sellers, especially in case of honey, turned up to be the main distributors of NTFPs.

Keywords

population survey, consumer preferences, forest services, forest products, urban areas, rural areas, Czech Republic

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 15. 4. 2016

Thesis defence

• Supervisor: Ing. Vladimír Verner, Ph.D.

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Bachelor programme / field:
Agricultural Specialization / Agriculture in Tropics and Subtropics